Leaf: I don’t know if Manziel knows who he is

Johnny Manziel’s NFL career is on hold indefinitely, but the Browns’ 2014 first-round pick faces issues much bigger than football. He spent 10 weeks in a treatment facility following his rookie campaign, but struggled with off-field issues for much of last season. Hours before the Browns’ regular-season finale, Manziel was reportedly spotted in Las Vegas wearing a disguise, and by March he was out of a job.

Then last week, Manziel was indicted by a Dallas grand jury on Tuesday in the domestic assault case involving former girlfriend Colleen Crowley.

On Monday, Ryan Leaf, who was drafted second overall in 1998 — one pick after Peyton Manning — and subsequently struggled with substance abuse and did jail time, spoke with CBS Sports Radio’s Marc Malusis and Maggie Gray about Manziel.

“I’ve reached out to Johnny and that’s all we can do,” Leaf said. “We can be supportive and unconditionally love somebody for who they truly are. I mean, his identity is tied up in this Johnny Football caricature. I don’t know if he really knows who he is, or if he gets to express who he really is to people.

“I went through that for a long time. It’s like looking in a mirror sometimes,” Leaf continued. … …

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