More than three years after retiring, Tom Brady remains the benchmark every quarterback is measured against. That reality resurfaced once again after a former Browns quarterback made a bold claim that has sparked fresh debate across the NFL community.

After responding to ESPN analyst Tony Rizzo, the former Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel again reignited his feud with the franchise after blaming the Browns for his failed career while comparing it to Tom Brady. 

“My tenure in Cleveland was doomed by a lot more people than just me. I’ve taken plenty of responsibility for my failures in that building and in that city,” Johnny Manziel said. “Tom Brady couldn’t have won with our roster from 2015. Just move on, [expletive] off and leave me out of this [expletive].”

It all began when Rizzo questioned Manziel about his saltiness against the Browns, to which he responded through an X post, which he deleted later when a controversy again broke out.

But was it all necessary??

Manziel argued that he never received a good roster around him, which was the reason for his failure on the gridiron. 

But his stats say something else.

The Browns drafted the former quarterback in the 2014 NFL draft as a first-round (22nd overall) pick. Manziel played for two seasons, during which he only appeared in 14 games and scored seven touchdowns while throwing for 1,675 yards. 

According to PFSN's Offense Impact metrics, the offense around him posted a 69.5 impact score that ranked 24th league-wide, while the defense checked in at 67.2, good for 29th in 2015.

Rizzo’s point was why there was so much hate for the Browns, even when they all rooted for him on the gridiron.

Even after so many years, he hasn’t proved them wrong. 

While Brady's name was dragged into another controversy, the seven-time Super Bowl champion remains focused on helping shape the next generation of quarterbacks.

Tom Brady set to help Mendoza's development

As reported by Michael Canelo of the Las Vegas Raiders on SI, the Raiders’ minority owner Tom Brady is fully devoted to his franchise’s rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza’s development. 

"A lot of pressure and a lot of mentoring," said Tom Brady on the Stick to Football podcast. "There was another guy who was my favorite quarterback to ever play. Peyton [Manning] was my age, a little older than me. He was the first overall pick, and he had a tremendous amount of expectation. He was like the first prospect out of high school to go to college…For Fernando, he gets that same expectation. He has me there to mentor him."

Mendoza, the first overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft, is expected to face high pressure and expectations from the fans and the franchise, per Brady.

On the podcast, Brady said he will make sure that he remains available for Mendoza to clear his doubts and help him take his game to the next level. 

Although not everyone is happy with the recent controversy, Brady remains devoted to his work more than ever.

Read more at Quarter Back Central!

Written by

Kunwar Yashaswee Chhaunker