Cleveland Browns general manager Ray Farmer will not attend the pro day workout of former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel on Thursday and said he doesn't understand what all the pro-day fuss is about.
Farmer reportedly attended the pro-day workouts of quarterback prospects Blake Bortles and Teddy Bridgewater, but his absence from Manziel's workout Thursday shouldn't indicate a lack of interest on the Browns' part -- not given Farmer's jab at the sterilized environment of a pro day throwing session.
"I will not be going to Johnny Manziel's workout," Farmer said, according to cleveland.com. "There's definitely a schedule conflict, and definitely opportunities to talk to all parties that we may or may not be interested in. A pro day of orchestrated throws, I don't know what that tells you. It's a piece of it that people blow up into this great thing. I went to a lot of games and practices this fall. I've seen them throw the ball. ... We will have our opportunities to have private workouts. Being in charge of that workout is different than being at a pro day where it's orchestrated and scripted."
While Farmer will have to get his report on Manziel's pro day from whatever Browns representatives do make the trip, the Houston Texans' decision makers will be there in force: head coach, general manager and quarterbacks coach. Houston holds the No. 1 overall pick in the May 8-10 draft, and the Browns own the No. 4 pick.
Say this for Farmer and the Browns: The new club regime has its own way of doing things. Recall that, despite its need for a young quarterback, the team did not interview any at the position at the NFL Scouting Combine last month. Much like Farmer's take on the difference between scripted and private workouts, the interview process at the combine and the private interviews the Browns can facilitate with quarterbacks on their own have their differences as well.
Right or wrong, Farmer is going about draft preparation all his own way.
Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter @ChaseGoodbread.