The Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Montreal Alouettes pulled off a blockbuster deal over the weekend, with former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel heading to Quebec in exchange for a strong package of players and picks.
The early consensus seems to be that Hamilton got the better end of the deal. The play of Tiger-Cats starting quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who ranks second in the CFL in passing yards, made Manziel expendable.
Enter the Alouettes, who have been expressing interest in Manziel for the past year and a half.
“It’s been a long process,” Tiger-Cats general manager Eric Tillman said in an interview on Sportsnet 590 The FAN’s Prime Time Sports Monday. “The first call was 17 or 18 months ago, last spring in March 2017. We’ve had multiple conversations over the past several months. In fact, quietly, we let Montreal work Johnny out in Dallas last September or August. They were certainly interested in doing a deal after that. We wanted to keep Johnny’s rights, which we did …
“Montreal came forward with a very, very aggressive offer and it came together over 72 to 96 hours.”
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Despite trading Manziel, Tillman had nothing but good things to say about the 25-year-old, praising his attitude from the first day he arrived in Hamilton. Tillman also believes Manziel could definitely have another shot at the NFL in his future if he can stay out of trouble away from the gridiron.
“The concern has never been talent. It’s been off-field things,” Tillman said. “If he handles himself off the field, I don’t think there’s any question he can play in the NFL. I see many similarities to [Cleveland Browns No. 1 pick] Baker Mayfield athletically, personality, skill-set wise.
Manziel appeared in 15 games for the Browns over two seasons in 2014 and ’15, throwing for 1,675 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. He did not see action in five games with the Tiger-Cats prior to the trade.
Listen to Tillman’s full interview in the audio player below:
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