2014 NFL Draft Update: Johnny Manziel Goes Off on UTEP

Nov 2, 2013; College Station, TX, USA; Texas A

If it wasn’t such a longshot to happen historically, you might actually believe Johnny Manziel has a good shot to win back-to-back Heisman trophies.

Manziel was at it again against UTEP on Saturday night, playing less than three full quarters and throwing for 273 yards and four touchdowns along with 67 yards rushing and two more touchdowns.

This kid is playing absolutely unreal the last three weeks, including a tough loss to Auburn. He’s accounted for 15 total touchdowns and just three interceptions over that time frame, and is looking more and more like a top 10 or 15 selection in addition to a legitimate repeat Heisman candidate.

There are certainly holes in Manziel’s game, and he’s obviously not ideal size for the NFL, but this is a guy who undeniably makes plays and makes players around him better. I feel like we’ve also seen him grow significantly as a leader on the field, rallying his teammates and taking command of the Texas A&M offense.

As much attention is paid to Manziel’s off-field antics, he seems to have significantly improved as a leader on the field, at least from what I can remember seeing from last season.

The biggest thing probably as far as Manziel is concerned this season–and this certainly isn’t entirely his fault–is the fact that Texas A&M has lost their two biggest games this season against Alabama and Auburn.

I think if A&M had been able to win one of those two games, they’d be in the thick of the BCS discussion right now and even at 7-2 this season, they are inching closer toward that discussion but with two losses, the BCS title game is almost certainly out of reach.

Still, you have to be impressed with what Manziel has done this season. He has already matched his season total from a year ago with 26 passing touchdowns, but is still well off his 21 rushing touchdown total from last season with eight so far in 2013.

It wouldn’t shock me to see Manziel at the Heisman ceremony again this year, and it certainly wouldn’t shock me if he won it. With big games coming up against LSU and Missouri, Manziel has a chance to have that “Heisman moment” that so many people talk about, and he also has a chance to lead his team somewhere pretty special if the Aggies can win out the rest of the year.

We’ll see how this all plays out, but as of right now, I think we’ll see Manziel move on to the NFL after this season and I personally can’t wait to see what team picks him up and takes a chance on him.