The NFL is actively investigating Johnny Manziel's involvement in a hit-and-run accident that allegedly took place in Los Angeles in April, according to TMZ Sports. Manziel is not currently signed to an NFL team, so you might not think there's much the NFL can do to punish him if they find that he did something wrong during the alleged incident. But as recently as early May, the league suspended free agent running back Bernard Pierce for two games, which proves NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is more than willing to suspend a player even though he might not be an active member of the league right now.
During the alleged hit-and-run accident, Manziel was reportedly a passenger in a car driven by Ryan Silverstein, better known as "OVO Ryan" of Drake's OVO crew. Silverstein was seen by witnesses driving into a light pole in Hollywood before he and Manziel bolted from the scene and were reportedly picked up by Manziel's former Browns teammate Josh Gordon. It doesn't appear as though the accident was a minor fender-bender, either. A picture of the wreckage snapped by TMZ Sports showed the extensive damage that was done to the vehicle Silverstein was driving:
Manziel was reportedly questioned by police after coming back to the scene of the accident a short time after it happened, but he was not charged with any crime, making it one of his more productive days of this offseason.
However, to further complicate matters, the Mercedes S550 Silverstein reportedly crashed was a rental, and the person who loaned it out to Silverstein and Manziel claims the duo has refused to pay for $90,000 in damages to the vehicle. Wayne Schneider, the owner of luxury car rental company PCLA, told TMZ Sports that Manziel initially promised to buy him a new car, but he says he hasn't heard from Manziel since speaking with him after the accident.
Frustrated with his inability to reach Manziel, Schneider reached out to the NFL for help on the matter, and the league is now reportedly investigating the situation. The investigation into the car accident is part of a "larger Manziel investigation which is ongoing."
While the fact that Manziel is out of the league precludes Goodell from pulling whatever punishment he has stored up his butt and throwing it at the former Browns quarterback immediately, Manziel could face a suspension next season in the extremely unlikely event that he fixes his life within the next three months and ends up back in the league this summer. Stay tuned for more details about the NFL's investigation, and head here to see the trouble Manziel found himself in this weekend when he got into an altercation at a Drake performance in Las Vegas.
