Johnny Football is huddling up again for a long-awaited comeback – in Canada.

Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel signed a two-year contract with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League on Saturday Rigoberto Sanchez Jersey , looking to salvage his football career after a turbulent and unsuccessful stay with the Cleveland Browns.

”I don’t want to wait around anymore,” Manziel said during a news conference at Tim Hortons Field, where he will play his home games this season.

The decision to head north of the U.S. border to play football ended months of speculation on his possible path back to the game.

”I want a chance to get on the field and get into the locker room and get a chance to play ball again,” Manziel said. ”This isn’t just a pit stop for me. I’m not coming here to get what I need to go back down to the NFL. I’ve signed into this for the long haul, for two years.

”I’m here to make the most of it.”

Manziel actively pursued an NFL contract this offseason and played in the developmental Spring League last month, his first action in organized football since the 2015 NFL season. He now comes to a team coached by June Jones, a former NFL and college quarterback and coach. Players report to training camp Sunday.

”I don’t know what two years down the road looks like for me,” Manziel said. ”Maybe I come up here and I love it and I don’t want to go anywhere. We’ll play it by ear and take it day by day, like I’ve been doing.”

The 25-year-old quarterback won the 2012 Heisman Trophy at Texas A&M, and was selected in the first round – No. 22 overall – in the 2014 NFL draft by the Browns. He was released in March 2016 after posting a 2-6 record over two tumultuous campaigns.

This offseason, Manziel threw during pro days at both Texas A&M and the University of San Diego, and participated in The Spring League – a development circuit for players overlooked by the NFL.

”He has the ability to play at any level he wants to play at,” Jones said. ”He’s ready to get that challenge done and accomplish what he knows he can do.”

Manziel is not guaranteed a starting spot with Hamilton Derick Brassard Penguins Jersey , though. He’s the fifth quarterback on the roster, joining Jeremiah Masoli – who was named the starter when Jones took over as coach late last season – CFL veterans Bryant Moniz and Vernon Adams Jr., and Dane Evans.

”I want to play, as anybody does,” Manziel said. ”I know there’s talent in our quarterback room and I respect the guys we do have. I know there’s going to be a learning curve and I’m going to have to take some time. I have realistic goals to come in, learn the offense, learn the game and hopefully my talent and making some throws and doing some things I feel I can do on the football field will show.”

Jones echoed Manziel’s comments, and reiterated that Masoli remains the Tiger-Cats’ starter as of Saturday.

”Let me tell you something right now: He has got his work ahead of him to beat out Jeremiah,” Jones said of Manziel. ”Now, I am a firm believer, even when I was in the NFL, I wanted three quarterbacks that had started and played in the NFL. You can’t have too many quarterbacks because you’re one play away.”

Manziel has dealt with several off-field issues. In 2016, a domestic assault charge against Manziel in Dallas was dismissed after he took an anger management course and participated in the NFL’s substance-abuse program. In a recent interview http://www.bengalsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-preston-brown-jersey , he said he’s been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has stopped drinking.

The CFL has a policy on violence against women. The league said in a statement that in December it began a process to determine if Manziel could join the league. Manziel had to meet certain conditions, including an assessment by an independent expert on domestic violence, a review by legal counsel and a discussion with Commissioner Randy Ambrosie.

The league said it informed Manziel and the Tiger-Cats it would approve his signing. He must, however, continue to meet the specified conditions to ”maintain his eligibility.”

In January, after signing a three-year contract to remain Hamilton’s coach, Jones gushed about Manziel’s potential.

”I think he’d be the best player to ever play up here,” he said. ”He can throw it and he can run it like nobody ever has been able to do.”

Manziel is arguably the highest-profile NFL player to come to the CFL since 2006, when running back Ricky Williams joined the Toronto Argonauts. And with 2.23 million followers on Twitter, Manziel has no shortage of people interested in every move he makes – on and off the field.

But Manziel said he’s in a much better place in his life now than he was when he first entered the NFL.

”I remember the day I got drafted,” he said. ”I was probably a little hesitant on the team I was going to and where I was going. It was a big jump and a lot of uncertainty from the system I ran in college to what the NFL system was going to be when I walked into the building the first day.

My situation here, I’ve completely accepted this team and where I’m at that this is my best opportunity to get a chance to go out on the field and be a part of a team. I’ve done a lot of things in my personal life. I’ve worked extremely hard in the physical and football aspects of my life. I feel like I’m in the best place that I’ve been mentally and physically in my life.”

—

Evander Kane followed a similar timeline after each of his first eight NHL regular seasons.

Pack up the locker, say goodbye to teammates and get frustrated watching other players compete in the playoffs rather than getting his own opportunity on the big stage.

A late-season trade to San Jose changed all that for Kane Adidas Eric Staal Jersey , who is excited for his first chance at the postseason after 574 career games when the Sharks open their first-round series in Anaheim on Thursday night.

”I’ve said it in the past: I think I’m a playoff player,” Kane said Monday. ”I’ve watched the playoffs and when I look at the style of play and it’s something I was jealous because I wasn’t involved in it. Now I get that opportunity and I have to back those words up.”

Kane has had plenty of personal success since making his debut for Atlanta as an 18-year-old in 2009 after being the fourth overall pick that year. But his teams never had success in Atlanta, Winnipeg or Buffalo and he always spent the spring as a spectator rather than as a participant.

He joins a franchise that has been a playoff regular, making the postseason for the 13th time in the past 14 seasons under general manager Doug Wilson, including a run to the Stanley Cup Final two years ago.

”Fans and players in this organization are spoiled when it comes to that,” center Logan Couture said. ”You make the playoffs 13 of 14 years – obviously it starts at the top with Doug and the coaching staffs they’ve brought in here. It’s pretty remarkable really to make the playoffs that many times. I missed it once and it’s devastating when you miss it. We’re lucky to play for this organization.”

That’s why Kane was so excited about the trade to San Jose on Feb. 26 for two draft picks and a prospect.

Kane has made a big impact on the Sharks since arriving. He stepped right onto the top line with captain Joe Pavelski and has used his speed and physical play to deliver nine goals and five assists in 17 games.

His presence sparked an eight-game winning streak in March that helped San Jose clinch a playoff berth and he has helped fill a scoring void created when Patrick Marleau left as a free agent for Toronto last summer and then Joe Thornton went down with a knee injury in January.

”In the short period he’s been here, he’s brought speed which backs teams off, he’s brought a physical presence, which keeps some people honest,” coach Peter DeBoer said. ”For me, the biggest thing is he’s probably added a goal a night for us. When Patty Marleau left, and we asked guys to take a step, you’re not scoring as much as you normally would Youth Kalen Ballage Jersey , and there was a lot of 2-1 games and we found a way to battle things out. Eventually, Jumbo going down, it started to catch up with us. That extra goal a game that he’s added to our lineup, whether it’s him scoring himself or creating a goal, that’s a difference in this league.”

Kane was hampered late in the season by an undisclosed injury that forced him to miss two games before returning for the season finale against Minnesota on Saturday.

Kane didn’t look like his usual self that game but said it was important to get rid of some ”cobwebs” before the playoffs started and he gets the chance to back up his belief that he can thrive at this time of year.

”It’s a fast, hard-nosed game,” he said. ”The intensity ramps up and the style of play. It’s hard to score. There are a lot of 2-1 games, 3-2 games, and you have to find different ways to score. I’ve always prided myself on being able to score in different ways and I think the physical element as well. That’s a big part of the playoffs. Guys who have 20 hits all year the next thing you know they have 20 hits in two games. It’s definitely a different animal and I’m looking forward to experiencing it.”

NOTES: DeBoer said he expects all his players to be available for Game 1 on Thursday with the exception of Thornton, who has been out since Jan. 23.

—

New England Patriots Elite Jerseys