Johnny Manziel takes to Twitter to thank fans for their support after a new Netflix doc revealed a harrowing suicide attempt – and how he only survived because the gun was ‘faulty’
- The ex-NFL QB was dropped by the Cleveland Browns after two seasons (2014-2015)
- Manziel is the only freshman to win the Heisman Trophy in college football
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Former Texas A&M football star Johnny Manziel has taken to social media to thank his fans for their support after a new Netflix documentary revealed his harrowing suicide attempt and how he only survived due to a gun malfunction.
The 2012 Heisman Trophy winner, now 30, tweeted Monday to his 1.8 million Twitter followers saying he “can’t wait for you guys to see this.” Appreciate all the support!’
Manziel, who is seen by many as an NFL failure for only playing two seasons in the league after getting caught up in scandals and hard partying habits, revealed in the documentary that he once bought a gun with the intention of ending his making a living after being cut from the Cleveland Browns in 2016.
He originally reached the top level of football as a first round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, but not after that did his career spiral out of control. At one point, he even entered rehab while still a member of the Browns in February 2015.
Cleveland released him in March 2016 after only appearing in 14 games in two seasons.
Johnny Manziel thanked fans for their support ahead of the release of his Netflix documentary today
In the documentary, Manziel, 30, talks about his substance abuse and suicide attempt
Manziel remains the only freshman to win the Heisman Trophy in college football history
“I was just running from trouble,” Manziel says in the Netflix footage. “Direct self-sabotage, trying to burn this thing down. I planned to do whatever I wanted to do at that point in my life. Spending as much money as possible and then my plan was to take my life.
“Months earlier I bought a gun that I knew I would use. I wanted it to get as bad as humanly possible to where it made sense, and it seemed like an excuse and a way out to me.”
Manziel, who has now become a voice for people dealing with substance abuse just like him, went into great detail about the firearm’s defects.
“Still, to this day I don’t know what happened, but the gun just clicked on me,” he said.
He added that in 2018 he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
“Untold: Johnny Football,” to be released Tuesday, will chronicle Manziel’s rise to the top during a historic season at Texas A&M in 2012, when he was named as the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy.
Manziel barely lasted two seasons as NFL quarterback with the Cleveland Browns (2014-2015)
His intense partying habits included a “$5million bender” and nights out in Miami, while befriending the likes of Drake, Rick Ross, and LeBron James.
Manziel also delves into his autograph business which has earned him thousands of dollars.
That was before the NCAA allowed athletes to capitalize on their name, image, and likeness (NIL) in a 2021 ruling.
“I was 19 years old and had a hundred grand stuffed under his bed,” the ex-quarterback said in his Netflix documentary. “When I got everything I wanted, I think I was the most empty I’ve ever felt inside.”
Manziel now lives in Dallas with his girlfriend Kenzie Werner, a microblading artist from Houston.
He plans to open a bar and nightclub called Johnny’s Money Bar in College Station, where Texas A&M is located, in the fall.