Johnny Manziel's troubles hit close to home, Todd Marinovich says
SAN FRANCISCO — Pleading for Johnny Manziel to get back into rehab could be counterproductive, said Todd Marinovich, the former quarterback whose substance abuse problems undermined his NFL career in the early 1990s.
“It just never lasted when I was doing it for the job or I was doing it for family,’’ Marinovich told USA TODAY Sports on Saturday. “I don’t know if you can be reached if the person is unwilling. It’s almost like you have to let them go and experience what they’re going to experience."
Manziel’s father told the Dallas Morning News that twice last week he unsuccessfully tried to get Manziel into rehab. The troubled Cleveland Browns quarterback spent about 10 weeks in rehab for undisclosed problems before the 2015 season.
Manziel’s off-field troubles escalated last week when his former girlfriend told police he’d assaulted her and a judge granted a protective order against Manziel.
Marinovich said Manziel’s troubles hit close to home.
NFL DRAFT HUB: Latest NFL Draft mock drafts, news, live picks, grades and analysis.
“Playing quarterback at a young age in the NFL with all the pressure that is involved is insane, really," Marinovich said. “I didn’t have any tools at that age to deal with all that and juggle that and keep centered to where I could function on and off the field.
“I had no chance. Does he? I don’t know. The only thing I can say is you can’t do this alone. And if he is struggling, to be successful you have to have a support group around you and be honest with these few people and tell them exactly what’s going on."
Bell: Dear Johnny Manziel, get the help you clearly need
Marinovich, 46, said he began abusing drugs and alcohol while in high school in Southern California, when he earned Parade All-America honors and accepted a scholarship to USC. He was arrested for cocaine possession shortly after his senior year in 1990 and a few months later was taken in the first round of the NFL draft with the 24th overall pick by the Los Angeles Raiders.
The Raiders got him into rehab in 1992, but his continued drug use led to the team cutting Marinovich before the 1993 season. He never played again in the NFL.
“It devastated my whole playing career,’’ Marinovich said of his substance abuse. “In spite of what I was doing off the field, I did a miraculous job on the field, just to suit up and show up.
“I sometimes think, ‘Gosh, what could I have done?’ I sold myself short and didn’t really give myself the best opportunity to use the talent I had. That’s sad.”
Dallas police says it will open an investigation into incident involving Manziel
Having retired from football in 2001 after two seasons in the Arena Football League, Marinovich said he speaks frequently at schools and to church groups and youth groups.
“Paramount in my recovery is speaking and sharing my story, so I do it a lot,’’ he said. “I want to be there because it’s a tough, tough, almost beyond words, it’s a struggle. The pain, and the feeling that you’re letting people down, it’s terrible.
“People that are on the outside that think, ‘He’s out partying,' you know, for someone further along with their addiction, that’s the furthest thing for the truth. It’s not a party anymore at all. The person’s suffering."
Suffering is what Marinovich said led him to get help on his own accord.
“When I put both feet in,’’ he said, “that’s when the magic started happening.”