Browns owner says team didn't know about Johnny Manziel's personal life

Jimmy Haslam must not have access to the Internet.

That's really the only way to explain how the Cleveland Browns' owner could have not known about Johnny Manziel's off-field red flags when the team drafted him in the first round last year. Here's what Haslam said about Manziel during a press conference on Wednesday:

"I don't know how much of Johnny's personal life was known by everybody then," Haslam said, according ot the Akron Beacon-Journal.

Come on.

There's two ways to view that quote: Either Haslam is lying or the Browns are the worst organization in sports. For the sake of Cleveland fans, don't answer that.

Manziel's penchant for going out was a massive story when he was at Texas A&M and leading up to the draft as well. Here's a passage from ESPN.com's Wright Thompson's story on Manziel, from July 30, 2013. This was written by Thompson nine months before the Browns drafted Manziel, with references to Manziel's father Paul and Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin:

"Paul thinks Johnny drinks to deal with the stress. After his arrest, Johnny's parents and Sumlin mandated he visit an alcohol counselor; Johnny saw him six or seven weeks during the season."

Dr. Saturday wrote extensively about Manziel's life in the spotlight. Everyone did. The extent of Manziel's issues that caused him to check into a treatment facility might not have been clear, but if Haslam and the Browns' front office didn't know anything about Manziel's off-field life, they were the only ones in the football world who were unaware.

But that's practically inconsequential going forward. The Browns invested a first-round pick into Manziel just a year ago and want to make it work. And Haslam said he thinks it can work.

"It's way too early to give up on Johnny," Haslam said, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer . "We certainly haven't given up on him. Everybody's been too harsh."

Haslam said he didn't know when Manziel would return to the team, but he supported his decision to go to rehab.

It would be enormous for the Browns franchise if Manziel can become a franchise quarterback. And the Browns franchise could use some good news.

The Browns have a lot of issues but one of the most pressing ones is the NFL investigation into Browns general manager Ray Farmer sending texts to the sideline during games. The messages were relayed to the coaches on the sideline, and that's not allowed by the NFL. The punishment could be as harsh as the loss of a draft pick.

"He said he feels he made a mistake in sending those texts," Haslam said, via the Plain Dealer. "But it does not affect his standing with the club. I don't think Ray intended to gain an unfair advantage."

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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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