Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel will start Week 16 against the Carolina Panthers, according to Tony Grossi of ESPN. The news comes from head coach Mike Pettine, who confirmed that Manziel would be getting the start following the rookie quarterback's debut on Sunday. It was not a great start to Manziel's career, to say the least.
Johnny Manziel to start against Panthers; fantasy value low
Johnny Manziel will start against the Carolina Panthers. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Replacing Brian Hoyer and fighting for Cleveland's playoff chances, Manziel attempted just 18 passes against the Bengals. He completed 10 of those passes for 80 yards -- that's 4.4 yards per completion -- with no touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. He made multiple bad throws but to his credit, he was pretty consistently under pressure from a Bengals team that was fighting to stay ahead in the AFC North.
Fantasy Impact: Manziel will have every opportunity to flourish and could wind up being a solid quarterback some day, but fantasy owners shouldn’t start him in Week 16. The Panthers aren’t a great team, but they’re in first place in the NFC South and need to hang on to that lead. Manziel is likely in for another rough day against a very talented, if underachieving, defense.
