Did Browns not start Johnny Manziel over him going to Cavs game?

There is no end to the mind games among NFL coaches and their players, and apparently Johnny Manziel got caught on the wrong side of some last week.

According to Fox Sports' Jay Glazer, one reason the Cleveland Browns didn't name a starting quarterback until Wednesday was to see how the rookie Manziel reacted to the possibility that he would start. Then, Manziel showed up courtside at a Cleveland Cavaliers game on Tuesday night. The next day, the Browns announced Brian Hoyer was their quarterback.

Was that related? Glazer said yes.

“Johnny Manziel was not told he wasn’t the starting quarterback until Wednesday morning. On Tuesday evening, he was here, at the Cleveland Cavaliers game, sitting courtside," Glazer said. "And it made people inside that organization – they wanted to see how he would handle potentially starting. If you’re getting your first ever NFL start, there was hope he would be at the complex or at home getting ready for the Indianapolis Colts. He wasn’t.”

Obviously a lot went into the decision, and going with Hoyer wasn't simply due to Manziel cheering on LeBron James on Tuesday night (he has been to many home Cavs games this season). Still, it's an odd story if that ultimately played into Browns coach Mike Pettine's choice.

Manziel lives near the Cavs' arena, Tuesday is the players' day off in the NFL, and there was no word that Manziel did anything but watch basketball and go home on Tuesday night. It's possible Manziel put in 10 hours on Colts preparation, walked over for the 7 p.m. tip against the Bucks, and was in bed by 10 p.m.

Monitoring what players do on their off days, and apparently punishing them for something as innocuous as attending an NBA game, is a slippery slope. The Browns apparently want Manziel to cut back on his off-field activities, but to reportedly not start him because he spent a couple hours at a basketball game on Tuesday night seems a bit extreme.

Pettine said he never considered a quarterback change during Sunday's game, even though Hoyer struggled mightily and the offense's issues cost the Browns a chance to win the game, and the loss basically ruined their playoff chances. Was Pettine really was holding Manziel going to a basketball game on his off day near where he lives against him? If so, then the whole story sounds even stranger.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab

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