Browns general manager Ray Farmer will be judged on his inaugural two first-round picks, Justin Gilbert and Johnny Manziel, and still thinks they can excel.
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BEREA, Ohio -- Browns general manager Ray Farmer, who's still wed to Johnny Manziel and Justin Gilbert, answered "I do'' when asked if his 2014 first-round picks can still be quality NFL starters.
So far this season, Manziel has started one game -- although he might start in place of McCown Thursday night in Cincinnati - and Gilbert has started none. In fact, Gilbert has played only eight snaps on defense and that was five games ago in San Diego. Since that time, he's been limited to special teams.
What's more both of his inaugural first-round picks, who had wasted rookie seasons marred character issues, have been involved in embarrassing off-the-field incidents this season, Gilbert a road rage accident in which he crashed his car into a ditch and Manziel his roadway ordeal Oct. 12 in which he was questioned and released by Avon police.
The two would seem to be directionally incorrect, to borrow a Jimmy Haslam term, but Farmer disagrees.
Asked in his midseason press conference Tuesday if he believes Manziel, the No. 22 overall pick in 2014, can excel at this level, Farmer said, "I do.
"As Johnny continues to work through and do the pieces that he needs to do then he will continue to demonstrate that. I think he has done a much better job this year of doing exactly what he has been asked to do, inside and around us. When we see him here in the building Johnny has been doing the right things that we want to see him do from a learning and growth perspective."
Question is, can the Browns count on Manziel as their quarterback of the future after he admitted to drinking that afternoon, four hours before he a witness said he was driving 90 mph down the berm of the highway and crossing lanes erratically.
"Yes,'' said Farmer.
For most players, two drinks on an off day wouldn't be a red flag. But for Manziel, who spent 10 weeks in an addition treatment center in the offseason, it is. His high school coach, Julius Scott, who lived with him for a few months after rehab recently told USA Today Sports that he's concerned about Manziel drinking.
"If he asked me if I thought drinking was a good idea, I would say absolutely not," Scott said. "You'd have to have your head examined if you said, 'It's OK to go have a couple.'''
Scott said Manziel didn't drink in the weeks after he was released from rehab in April.
"He kept his sobriety alive and well when I was there," Scott said.
ESPN analyst Cris Carter, who's familiar with Manziel's situation, also recently told ESPN's Mike and Mike that Manziel has been drinking for awhile.
But Farmer has discussed the matter with Manziel and is comfortable enough with what he heard to keep the faith.
"My concern is what I have talked to Johnny about,'' said Farmer. "I'll leave it at that. We've had our conversations. Like I've said in the past, when I talk to players independently, I generally try to keep those conversations private."
Still under investigation by the NFL for possibly violating its personal conduct policy, Manziel is awaiting word on whether or not he'll be disciplined. In addition to the drinking and driving, the NFL is looking into allegations by Manziel's girlfriend Colleen Crowley that he hit her and shoved her head into the glass of the car during the reckless dash down the highway. She later told police he didn't hurt her.
The Browns are comfortable with Manziel's explanation that he was trying to keep Crowley from exiting the moving vehicle, but it remains to be seen what the league will decide.
Farmer, who addressed the media for the first time since July 31st, also still believes that Gilbert, the No. 8 overall pick last year, can live up to his lofty draft status.
"I do. He had a rocky first year to say the least. As he has progressed, he's gotten better this year. Like I said, guys progress at different points in time, and as he continues to grow, he'll get better."
Farmer admitted that he's surprised that Gilbert has been riding the bench while 2014 fourth-round pick Pierre Desir and undrafted free agent Johnson Bademosi have been replacing Joe Haden (concussion, broken finger, ribs).
"Yes. Candidly, yes,'' he said. "At the end of the day you want guys to play and you want them to play right away, you want to put them in there, you want them to go to Hall of Fame and the Pro Bowl. I wish they all were, I will give you the easy one, I wish they all were Joe Thomas. You just come in, and guess what you plug and play, goes to the Pro Bowl and never misses a snap and the movie never stops.
"That is not the reality for 99 percent of the people in this league - they have a learning curve. Some guys it's steeper than others. When he gets his opportunities I think he's embraced the notion of what he's had of the opportunities that he has been given. As he continues to get his opportunities he will continue to grow with those."
He disagreed with the suggestion that the two should be playing so the Browns can see what they have.
"Nobody should be given anything,'' said Farmer. "I've always been a fan of a guy has to earn it and the guy that earns it should play. Whether he's a college free agent, whether he's a first-round pick, the guy that earns it should play."
He admitted, however, that he's eager to see what the two youngsters can do ifgiven a chance.
"I won't say I am disappointed, but ...I could take you through a number of stories of guys that have gone from less-than stellar rookie campaigns to being Hall of Fame players,'' he said. "The questions becomes is the movie over after a single season or do we have to continue to work with guys and give them an opportunity to grow.
"That growth and as they continue to show that they are making the necessary strides - that is what you believe in. That is what we believe in and that is what we will continue to work towards."
After serving a four-game NFL suspension at the beginning of the season for texting his opinions on the use of players to the sidelines and the coaching booth, he insisted he's in lockstep with coach Mike Pettine and that he has no issues with how the coaches are using the personnel.
"I think our coaching staff does a great job of doing what they can with the guys that they have,'' he said. "They try to grow them. They work with them. They do everything they can. We're all doing the same thing. I'm working to get the best out of the guys in my department. They're working to get the best out of the guys in their department. We're working to try and win games. I think we're close in a lot of circumstances. We just haven't generated the results that we want."
Farmer knows he'll ultimately be judged on the Manziels and the Gilberts -- even the Dwayne Bowes on the roster -- even though they might not play much.
"I don't know if there's anything fair in this world,'' he said. "Fairness is not really what I got into this for. Every decision that's been made, every player that's been brought in here, it's been a Browns' decision. I don't sit in a vacuum - I keep saying it.
"I know it's my job and people will look at me and hold me accountable to the players that are here. We've made those commitments as a group. Whether he's a first-round pick, whether he's a free agent we paid money to or we didn't, we want the best player to play in Cleveland."
If the losing continues and Haslam ponders changes, will Farmer convince the impatient owner that the credits haven't rolled on some of his top picks yet? In addition to Manziel and Gilbert, 2015 No. 19 overall pick Cam Erving hasn't cracked the starting lineup yet.
"I don't know the answer to that question,'' said Farmer. "I'm going to work and do the best I can and work hard and continue to try to find players that make the Cleveland Browns win. You have to go through this whole thing and you have to see the movie until the end.
"The reality is that my seat is no warmer than the day I got it. That is a perception that everyone has for me and not a perception I have for myself. It sounds corny or sounds like it is a 'scout-ism' - I am just going to grind at it.''
Forever linked to his initial two first-round picks, Farmer will keep saying "I do'' until he has to say "I don't.''
