The new Netflix documentary Untold: Johnny Football was just recently released on the popular streaming service. This documentary arrives at a pivotal juncture in Johnny Manziel's journey through life, detailing all the ups and downs that occurred. While his legendary persona as “Johnny Football” from his college and NFL days remains etched in most everyone's memory, so does his dramatic fall. This film takes a deep look into what life was like for the former quarterback, who was one of sports greatest triumphs and tragedies.
Johnny Manziel lost who he was in Johnny Football
Just looking at Johnny Manziel back during his playing days at Texas A&M, most probably didn't expect too much. He was only 5-foot-11 and barely 200 pounds on a good day. But what he lacked in size, he certainly made up for in flare and enthusiasm out on the football field. That's where Johnny Football was born, even though that persona was born well before he entered onto the Aggies acclaimed Kyle Field.
Johnny Football was born in Kerrville, TX at Tivy High School, where Manziel showed his rather unorthodox, backyard football style of brand of quarterback football, where he'd often times play off innovation, using his legs and quickness to surprise defenses. What made his style of play interesting, though, is how it later translated into his real life as a person, not just a football player.
The alter ego of Johnny Football the player overtook Johnny Manziel the person, in that Manziel learned to live his life like he played football — full throttle, playing on his own terms without constraints.
Facing what made Johnny Football
What's interesting now is the realization that Manziel, now in his thirties, is still navigating the intricacies of life's puzzle. He's much better than he was just years prior, yet he's always facing the demons from his past.
The documentary candidly discloses most of those demons, to which for the longest he refused to seek help for. Manziel admitted that he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which undoubtedly was cause for a number of his issues he faced. He noted the harrowing experience of a suicide attempt after his departure from the Cleveland Browns in 2016, and his entanglement with substance abuse, that at one point resulted in a drastic 40-pound weight loss over nine months. There was also the domestic abuse allegations with his ex-girlfriend at that time, although charges were later dropped after reaching an agreement with prosecutors. There was all the neglect from family, friends and other loved ones.
Upon review, Manziel recognizes that his swift ascent contributed to a sense of unpreparedness for the realities of life. Within a span of two years, he transitioned from an SEC freshman quarterback at Texas A&M to a Heisman winner at just 19-years-old, then later to an NFL starter at the most important position in the sport. Not to mention that he was expected to be a savior of sorts to the historically awful quarterback play in Cleveland. The allure of newfound celebrity status and the temptations that accompanied it posed challenges, leading him astray with his full-throttle, party-driven lifestyle. His lack of maturity and mental health lead to him essentially delving into his own sense of comfort, and for him, that was Johnny Football.
Becoming Johnny Manziel, leaving past behind
In the present day, Manziel has reconciled with his family that he had at one time written off. He looks cleaner and healthier, reflecting his journey toward a more mature understanding of life's complexities as an evolving adult. This is all in an approach to finally shed the Johnny Football ego, although there may always be remnants of that person.
“I still get a lot of questions regarding football and regarding a past career, and I want to put the whole Johnny Football thing to rest,” Manziel told Meredith Cash of Insider. “Even though it'll never quite fully go away, at least for the majority of people in my interactions in daily life, I want to be able to put this story out there and just let it be what it is.”
With not only his football career now behind him, but also everything that encompassed that time in his life, from the frat-boy partyer, the celebrity, and of course, the Heisman trophy winner from a prestigious university, Manziel looks to rid himself of all the successes and tragedies during that time. Even though he may still have the smirk and some of the flamboyance of who Johnny Football was, by watching the documentary, you start to believe that Johnny Manziel just wants to be Johnny Manziel now.
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