Johnny Manziel Will Join The AAF’s Memphis Express

Johnny Manziel’s football career hit quite the road block when he was barred from the Canadian Football League at the end of February, leading to his release by the Montreal Alouettes. It took a few weeks, but Manziel has found a new home to continue his professional career back in the United States.

Adam Schefter of ESPN announced that Manziel would head to the Alliance of American Football, the nascent league in which every team has played five or six games so far in 2019. Due to a mechanism within the league’s rules, Manziel headed straight to the waiver wire.

It didn’t take long for Manziel to find a home. The first team that had the opportunity to acquire his services, the Memphis Express, claimed the former Heisman Trophy winner.

“We are pleased to welcome Johnny Manziel to Alliance of American Football, which we’ve always described as a league of opportunity for talented players to launch or revitalize their pro football careers,” AAF Head of Football Bill Polian said in a statement, according to Ben Kercheval of CBS Sports. “We completed extensive background work to determine whether it would be appropriate for Johnny to play this season, and after consulting with many people familiar with his situation, we concluded that it would be good for him to resume his pro football career here at The Alliance.”

Manziel fills a gigantic need for Mike Singletary’s squad, which sits at a league-worst 1-5 on the year. Opening day starter Christian Hackenberg struggled for the Express, which led to him getting pulled. His replacement, Zach Mettenberger, hurt his ankle last week.