Johnny Manziel sends advice to college football players amid changes to NIL

There are very few athletes who have had college careers under a brighter spotlight than Johnny Manziel did at Texas A&M. On the one hand, he was a Heisman Trophy-winning talent. On the other hand, he became known for his partying, off-field incidents, and reports that he accepted payment for autographs.

Today, Manziel is out of football, but has been more open about his time in college recently. In particular, he has been sharing more thoughts on the NIL era. Recently, he appeared on Always College Football, sharing some advice for players in the game today.

“I think the main thing is it’s great to be getting paid while you’re in college right now,” Manziel said. “But it’s not the real money you’re looking for. It’s that second contract that you get to in the NFL that changes your life forever. Football needs to be the main thing.”

Manziel would leave for the NFL following his redshirt sophomore season, becoming a first round pick of the Cleveland Browns. There’d be no second contract in the NFL for Manziel, though, and he’d be off the team just two seasons later. He bounced between the CFL, AAF, and the FCFL, but admits today that if NIL were available, he likely would have returned to Texas A&M instead of turning professional.

“In college, and you have three, maybe four years to get as good as you possibly can. You’re never going to get as much attention,” Manziel said. “And as much whatever you need from these high-end college football programs. You need this, you need that, you get it. Study hall, whatever it is, treatment, the best of everything. Like, that doesn’t happen when you get to the next level all the time. A lot of it’s on you.”

Contracts have become massive for NFL players, particularly quarterbacks. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is set to make $60 million annually. Eight different quarterbacks are making at least $51 million annually. NIL and the House settlement are nice, but they don’t come close to that financially.

“So, you really have to use your time in college,” Manziel said. “And focus on the game and realize that even though you’re making a couple hundred thousand dollars here and there, it may seem like it’s a huge deal, really the main focus is on getting as good as you can, putting yourself into a position to go to the next level and get drafted, and ultimately, try and get to that second contract. Because what these guys are making now is peanuts compared to what you want to make in the long run.”

Johnny Manziel believes the NFL would have been a pay cut for him if he had NIL at Texas A&M

Johnny Manziel made the jump to the NFL early. However, had NIL been around, that may have been different. He even thinks it would have been a pay cut to go to the NFL, given how much would potentially be available to him at Texas A&M.

“I tell people this all the time, and they asked me this, I really feel like I would have taken a pay cut had I gone to the NFL. I mean, that’s really what it would have been. I mean, it is crazy times that we’re living, and I think, you know, in a lot of areas, still figuring out exactly how to make it work the right way, where it’s not just the biggest boosters and the richest schools. If you look at A&M, you know, I feel like we’ve put a ton of money in it, to our NIL, and it hasn’t necessarily translated onto the field,” Manziel said.

“So, you know, I feel guys who are playing at a high level, who are really noticeable and really marketable, are making a great amount of money off the field, to the point where guys have the opportunity to stay in school rather than having to go to the NFL early.”

In his first NFL contract, Johnny Manziel was given a deal worth $8.2 million over four seasons with a $4.3 million signing bonus. In the most recent NFL Draft, running back Omarion Hampton was selected 22nd overall, the same slot as Manziel. He signed a four-year $17.77 million rookie contract.