​Former Cleveland Browns fan favorite Gary Barnidge relives one of the monumental decisions in the history of Cleveland Browns football.The Browns were 7-6 and coming off a two-game losing streak, and the leadership in the Browns’ facility decided that it was time to make the shift from Brian Hoyer to Johnny Manziel with three games to go in the season. Cleveland was still very much in playoff contention, but they made the call, and the rest is history.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn Manziel’s first start, the Browns lost at home to the Cincinnati Bengals, whom they had beaten five weeks before, 30-0. Manziel was 10-18 for 80 yards and two interceptions in his first NFL start. The Browns fell to 7-7, still alive for the playoffs, but hope was bleak after one of the worst QB performances in recent history.The Browns finished the year falling to the Carolina Panthers with Hoyer back at the helm, and to Baltimore while Connor Shaw was under center.Former Browns great Gary Barnidge joined a local Cleveland Podcast, At the Office, and talked about that moment.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe question was posed to him along the lines of “what was the most Cleveland Browns moment you experienced?” His response was exactly that, the Manziel and Hoyer situation.Barnidge went on a long answer, but in it, he made sure to say that “Johnny was not the problem… he just wasn’t ready. He should not have played ball his whole rookie year. He wasn’t ready to be a pro.”That’s really the first time that a former teammate of Manziel’s actually spoke positively of him from an on-the-field perspective. It is about a 50-50 split for what guys think about Manziel off the field, but every time anyone comments about his on-the-field performance or attitude, it’s always negative.Barnidge went the other direction, giving Manziel the benefit of the doubt, saying that it wasn’t his fault that he wasn’t ready. I would push back pretty hard on Barnidge that by week 14 of the NFL season, you should be ready to play. I certainly understand what Barnidge is saying, but as a first-round pick for a team needing a spark to make the Playoffs?AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWhat an absolutely perfect opportunity that any young quarterback would kill for, any quarterback except Johnny Manziel. He wasted the end of the season and wasted the best year in the careers of several Browns’ legends along the way.At the very least, for Manziel, at least one guy has his back, and that is Gary Barnidge.This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Former Browns’ TE defends Johnny Manziel, “Johnny was not the problem”