MONTREAL -- Johnny Manziel still hasn't played in a regular-season CFL game. He remained on the bench Thursday night during the Montreal Alouettes' 44-23 loss to the Edmonton Eskimos, and coach Mike Sherman said he did not know when he would be comfortable enough to put him into a game.
The Alouettes acquired Manziel last weekend from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for a bounty that included two first-round draft picks. He participated in three practices during the week but, Sherman said, two of them were shortened because of the team's quick turnaround for a Thursday game.
"I wasn't going to jeopardize his career with one day of practice," Sherman said, "and put him out there when we really weren't protecting very well. It just made logical sense."
Manziel declined comment. According to the team, Manziel did not think he should speak about a game he did not play in. Starter Vernon Adams, who completed 15 of 28 passes for 217 yards and an interception, did not want to address the situation, either.
"I'm not answering no questions about Johnny Manziel," Adams said. "I'm answering questions about myself. Don't ask me questions about Johnny Manziel."
Manziel was standing next to Adams at the moment. When the interview was over, Adams quietly told Manziel that he meant nothing personal.
Anticipation was high at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, where Manziel jerseys were selling for $149.95 (Canadian) and fans were increasingly calling for him to play. As the Eskimos blew the game open in the second half, many in the crowd chanted, "We want Johnny! We want Johnny!"
Realistically, Sherman said, Manziel had only a small chance of playing Thursday night -- and he told Manziel as much before the game.
"If there was a time when I felt like we had the game in hand or something like that," Sherman said, "and he can do some things that the knows, and the protection is good and he feels good about it, then [he would have played]. ... But I didn't want to say he wasn't playing if there was a chance I could play him."
The Alouettes now have a week to prepare for their next game, Aug. 3 against the Tiger-Cats. Sherman said he wasn't going to decide immediately who would play quarterback in that game. Speaking earlier this week, Manziel said he knew his road to success in the CFL would take longer than many expected.
"I've tempered my expectations to not reach too high," he said. "I want to come in and I want to play solid football. That's what I want to do. I realize there are going to be some growing pains to get there, because it is a process. I have been away from the game a little bit. I'm excited to get some reps, and I know I'm going to be putting in the time that I need to off the field to expedite that process."