Johnny Manziel is an Alcoholic and a Liar, According to ESPN's Skip Bayless

ESPN's First Take is a much-maligned sports debate show featuring Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless. The latter, a 63-year-old man who once won Texas Sportswriter of the Year three times, is now known for his bombastic statements that are often filled with more opinion than fact.

The sometimes moronic dialogue between Smith and Bayless has made for great television ratings in the past few years, with the premise hinging on the hosts spouting out gobs of ridiculous sentiment.

Monday morning, Bayless took things to another level.

The pair were discussing embattled Cleveland Browns quarterback -- and former Heisman Trophy winner -- Johnny Manziel, who recently had his season ended by a leg injury.

Known as a dedicated party star, Manziel told reporters after his injury that he was ready to clean up his act.

"This is a job for me now, and I have to take it a lot more seriously than maybe I did at first," said the 22-year-old, whose antics off the field at Texas A&M made him one of the most divisive figures in sports.

News broke soon after that Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon was suspended for the final game of the season after being late for a walkthrough. His reason for tardiness? He was out late at a party... hosted by Manziel.

This led to the Cleveland owner essentially threatening Manziel's job, and the boys on First Take had a field day with the topic on Monday morning.

Here's the dialogue:

Smith: You're essentially telling me that you believe that Johnny Manziel is an alcoholic and a liar. Is that correct.

Bayless (nodding): I do. Yes, I do. If you want to call him an alcoholic, I'll go that far. I think he can't handle his alcohol.

This is obviously going too far; Bayless has little to no evidence that Manziel is actually an alcoholic, and saying so is offensive to those who are affected by the crippling condition.

If we had to guess, Bayless will probably be suspended from the network for a week or two, based on what the Worldwide Leader In Sports has already dished out this year for less controversial opinions.

(SB Nation)

Tags

NFL