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Report: Nike courting Johnny Manziel

Manziel

Quarterback Johnny Manziel’s football future will be determined by someone else. But he remains in full control of his non-football earnings.

According to Matthew Kish of the Portland Business Journal, Manziel met Wednesday with Nike executives at the company’s Oregon campus.

Given Manziel’s connections to NBA star LeBron James, a potential affiliation with Nike makes sense. And from such an arrangement Manziel would likely make plenty of money.

Unlike his NFL earnings, which will be capped for three years based on his draft position (and far less than they would have been before 2011), Manziel can make as much as he wants off the field. Some believe he’ll become one of the rare NFL players who cash in significantly via endorsements.

His trip to Oregon comes at a time when his camp has been trying to create the impression that Manziel is focused exclusively on football, opting to pass on media opportunities (like a Super Bowl week tour of Radio Row) to focus on working out, gaining weight, watching film, and learning NFL schemes, defenses, and protections.

We’re not knocking the guy for trying to get paid. We’re pointing out that the notion Johnny Football is currently all about football is more about getting Johnny drafted as high as possible and less about reality.