Untold: Johnny Football
Netflix's documentary on Johnny Manziel.
"Win or lose, we booze." - Johnny Manziel
"When someone shows you who they are, believe them." - Maya Angelou
Finally saw the Johnny Manziel documentary on Netflix, Untold: Johnny Football after hearing or reading so much about it. (Spoilers Alert) First off - let me say that I enjoyed it. Manziel was a Texas kid who grew up in a culture where high school football then college ball was king and Johnny Football was born. It was also a culture in both places that let warriors boozily enjoy their off time. And Johnny loved the life and made no bones about it.
The documentary also shows the dark underbelly of college football under the auspices of the NCAA. Enter Uncle Nate (Nate Fitch - who I enjoyed) and how Manziel skirted NCAA rules while the pair made oodles of cash which was still just a fraction of what Johnny Football was bringing to Texas A&M and the NCAA. Things we always suspected about and it was good to finally see solid documentation. This is probably the only "show" that will feature Manziel so why begrudge him profiting? I was grateful for the documentary and the admission that he tried to commit suicide after the glory ride was over only to fail. We would not have that without the Netflix special.
Couldn't help but also notice the Untold's opening features many different athletes. This appears to be the first of a series of documentaries and one can only hope.
Now to deal with some of the criticisms of the documentary:
Yes he flamed out in the NFL with the Browns but only because his agent, Erik Burkhart, was successful in duping some team into taking him in the first round of the draft. He actually brags about it. Why would anyone sign with Burkhart after seeing this?
Heard a complaint going in that Kliff Kingsbury wasn't featured enough but was blown away how much and how truthfully Kingsbury spoke on camera.
Manziel coming from a rich family was always a myth. Something Uncle Nate explained on camera.
Some complain that the domestic violence was swept under the rug in the documentary but Netflix does bring it up. My view is this unveils the critic's bias more than Manziel’s who seems pretty clear who he was and what were his priorities in life. Now I have a better perspective on Johnny Football and also cynically feel anyone in Johnny Football's life knew full well who is was.
The documentary says the game against Mississippi State was Manziel's last game for Texas A&M. They actually played 3 more games. It was their last home game although. Small mistake? I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. Barely noticeable.
Some complain that it wasn't LONG enough. Guessing this complaint will die down as we enter Week Zero and people get their college football fixes.
Looking forward to the next Untold installment from Netflix.
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