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NFL

Manziel to attempt comeback at Spring League

Former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel will participate in the developmental Spring League this year as part of his attempt to return to the NFL.

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The Spring League announced Wednesday that Manziel has signed a deal to play in the Elite D-League, which runs in Austin, Texas, from March 28 through April 15.

“We believe our platform is the ideal forum for Mr. Manziel to enact his NFL comeback,” league CEO Brian Woods said in a statement.

Manziel, who told ABC News on Monday that he has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, acknowledged in a statement that he has “made my share of mistakes” but said he is thankful for the opportunity to play in the Spring League.

“Football has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. Sometimes you take for granted how much you value something until it’s gone. My goal is to make it back to the NFL and I realize I have to earn that privilege,” Manziel said. “The Spring League has provided me with a great opportunity to play ball again, and ultimately, that is all I want to do. I miss the competition.”

Johnny Manziel last played in the NFL in 2015 with the Cleveland Browns. He told ABC News on Monday that he’s been working out and trying to convince an NFL team to give him a second chance. Scott Iskowitz/Getty Images

The Spring League consists of four teams competing in two doubleheaders, which will be played in April. According the league’s website, 10 NFL teams attended games in 2017 and 22 NFL teams requested game film from last year.

Manziel last played in the NFL in 2015 with the Cleveland Browns, who selected him 22nd overall in the 2014 draft. As a Texas A&M freshman, Manziel won the Heisman Trophy in 2012.

Soccer

Eriksen: Tottenham 'completely different' thanks to Pochettino

After going 2-0 down within 10 minutes, most teams would have succumbed to a comprehensive defeat away from home.

At least that’s what Christian Eriksen thinks, who starred as Tottenham Hotspur overcame that deficit to record an impressive 2-2 draw at Italian behemoth Juventus on Tuesday.

The Dane bagged the leveller, firing a free-kick past the Old Lady’s wall and beyond Gianluigi Buffon. It completed a turnaround which, for Eriksen, serves as indisputable evidence of an identity change at Spurs.

“Of course, we are building on every season compared to when I arrived here four or five years ago,” Eriksen told The Telegraph’s Matt Law after the Champions League round of 16 tie. “The games against the top teams when you are 2-0 down after nine minutes, you lost 6-0.

“That’s the thing we’ve changed with the manager coming in, with the players we have here. Everyone has grown up and they are not going to lie down if they are 2-0 down anyway.”

In front of an expectant crowd in Turin, Gonzalo Higuain scored twice early on to give an advantage Juventus seldom surrenders. However, the usually resolute outfit was soon overwhelmed by the visitor’s midfield. Mousa Dembele was at his imperious best, Erik Lamela justified his selection in lieu of fan favourite Heung-Min Son, and Dele Alli showed signs of his explosive form from the previous two campaigns.

Related: Dembele the driving force as Spurs shock Juventus

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

But it was Eriksen, an expert infiltrator of space and master of the clipped pass, who drew the most praise. Not bad for a man previously listed alongside the inadequate players acquired using cash from Gareth Bale’s Real Madrid transfer in 2013.

“Tottenham has become, compared to what it was when I came to what it is now, completely different,” Eriksen said. “That’s up to the manager, up to the players and the quality we have in the squad really.”

He added: “We don’t care where we are or what time it is, or which stadium we play in or which we team we play, we always try to dominate, to get the ball forward as quickly as possible and create something.”

Spurs are now out of their toughest spate of fixtures this season. Since the last day of January, the north London club has faced Manchester United, Liverpool, an FA Cup replay against Newport County, Arsenal, and Juventus, collecting three wins and two draws. The second leg with Juventus will be staged at Wembley on March 7.

NFL

Combine workouts are no joke, especially for a 39-year-old Giants reporter

MANALAPAN, N.J. — With the 2017 NFL season officially over, our attention shifted last week to other things, including the draft. Except with the New York Giants’ season a train wreck and long over, I did that weeks ago.

I’m not alone. NFL combine prep has been going on for weeks, months even. College players are scattered at facilities across the country, training for the draft. This year, I decided to join them.

It is more than football. With the process comes the calisthenics and track-and-field portion of the proceedings. Yes, they train and run drills they likely will never have to do again after this is over.

ESPN reporter Jordan Raanan gets a first-hand look at an NFL draft preparation program at Parabolic Performance & Rehabilitation in New Jersey. Kris Enslen/Parabolic Performance & Rehabilitation

The people at Parabolic Performance & Rehabilitation were nice enough to let me join their group of NFL prospects in New Jersey. Whenever possible for several months — remember, I still have a job as the Giants reporter that involves, you know, work — they’re allowing me to train alongside players from schools that range from Pittsburgh and Syracuse to Monmouth and Youngstown State to Wyoming, Wagner and Southern Connecticut on a regular basis. Performance coaches Justin Moore and Kris Enslen have welcomed me into the group with open arms, even if my body has sometimes rejected the invitation.

It’s carte blanche access. I’m experiencing everything as one of the players, whether it’s on-field or weight room training, classroom work, nutrition and even yoga. When all is said and done, we’re going to see just how beneficial these combine/pro day preparatory programs (which traditionally last six weeks or more depending on the individual) can be, even for a middle-aged graybeard.

Baseline testing has already been done. (Hint: Not good.) We’re in the process of setting up my own personal combine/pro day some time next month.

The drills being tested are the 40-yard dash, vertical jump, three-cone drill (or L drill) and shuttle (5-10-5). The goal is to see how much improvement can be made by a near-40-year-old average Joe, non-professional athlete partaking in the intense program.

A recap of the first three weeks:

    • Baseline testing: Let’s just say I’m slower and fatter and don’t jump nearly as high as my ego or brain anticipated. Heading into the initial testing, the thinking was about 5.80 seconds in the 40-yard dash and 30 inches in the vertical. The logic was that once upon a time there was a relatively decent athlete inside this 5-foot-11, 190-pound frame who was somewhat normal-human fast (remember, these guys you see on TV are mutants, the 1 percenters of society) and capable of hanging from the basketball rim. Well, the 5.80 seconds was close. My baseline 40 time was 5.84. The 30-inch vertical was me in la-la land. More like 20 inches. I jumped 19.5. Overall, not completely embarrassing. My expectations were low entering this experiment, and I ate the heck out of everything (even bought Snowballs one day at the convenience store) the previous month or so knowing this would help get me back in reasonable shape. Better to set the bar low was the thinking.

  • Initial shock: First, let me explain that it is somewhat humiliating to see a 350-pound lineman such as Pitt’s Alex Officer run faster and move better than you. But it’s reality. You realize these guys, even the linemen, are athletes. They’re all more athletic than me at my current age (39 on Thursday). My body after the first few workouts felt like death. No, really, my limbs would barely bend. This is unlike anything that constitutes a typical average Joe workout. This is sprinting, starting and stopping, and jumping — all explosive movements that you don’t do at a normal day at the gym. Let’s just say my body is better suited for the treadmill. After the first few workouts, I couldn’t stand, walk, get out of bed or eat a cookie without pain. It took me at least two weeks before my 6-year-old daughter could jump on my back without it feeling as though Giants defensive tackle Damon Harrison was punching that body part.

  • Position drills: OK, this was a complete debacle trying to run position drills, particularly when my body felt awful and didn’t want to sync with the brain. When was the last time I ran any sort of football drill? Twenty-plus years ago? It is much harder than it looks. Current Giant Devon Kennard runs the linebackers through field drills some days. He saw firsthand the stiffness in my hips (man, were they killing me), or my whole body, to be more precise. I felt especially awful after that day of work.

  • Physical toll: The work these prospective NFL players are putting in every day is no joke. The training they are getting is staggering. Most are there six days a week from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., working on everything from the track-and-field drills that are commonplace at the combine and pro days to specific positional drills to weight training to nutrition. It’s quite a commitment. It’s also quite a physical grind. They still manage to make it look relatively easy. Even their recovery days by most standards wouldn’t be considered light workouts. I’m trying to hang. Key word: trying. And there has been progress. In a few weeks, the program allowed me to cut off more than one-tenth of a second off my first 10 yards. I’m confident after experiencing it firsthand for almost a month that the program will allow me to improve my times and jumps significantly. Now if only my hamstrings (note: plural) hold up. Good thing there are physical therapists such as Dr. Jeremy Paster there to get me through the program. At least the hope is for me to make it out alive and greatly improved.

Soccer

Juventus rules out Dybala for Tottenham's visit

Tottenham’s chances of escaping Turin with a result have been handed a massive boost.

Juventus boss Max Allegri announced his 19-man squad for Tuesday’s Champions League last-16 first-leg clash with Spurs, with the most notable omission being Argentine attacker Paulo Dybala.

Dybala, 24, suffered a hamstring injury on Jan. 6 against Cagliari and hasn’t played since, with initial reports suggesting he could miss a month. After a hot start to the campaign saw the versatile forward score a dozen goals in eight league outings, injuries and form have seen Dybala return to earth with just three tallies in his last 10 matches across all competitions.

The former Palermo standout was photographed Monday in first-team training with his Vecchia Signora brethren, and will join Stephan Lichtsteiner, Blaise Matuidi, Andrea Barzagli, and Juan Cuadrado on the sidelines.

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Soccer