National Football League

Fan who was in late-night fight with Manziel apologizes, cheers him on

Published Dec. 12, 2014 11:54 p.m. ET

foxsports

All around northeast Ohio, they're pulling for Johnny Manziel -- even a guy who got into a fight with him.

On Friday, a couple of days before Manziel makes his first NFL start in the Cleveland Browns' game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Johnny Football received a public apology from Chris Gonos, a fan who precipitated a scuffle with Manziel early in the morning of Nov. 22.

Gonos posted a note via Facebook and also sent it to The Plain Dealer. It read, in part:

"First off, I would like to apologize for approaching you the way I did. All I ever wanted was to show love and give respect. What occurred that night was a huge misunderstanding. ...

"I apologize for the incident and bringing a negative light to your name and reputation. ...

"As a true Clevelander, I wish you the best, and I'm ready for you to 'wreck this league.'"

The incident happened in the lobby of the apartment building where the rookie quarterback lives in Cleveland. Gonos told police a fight broke out, with Gonos and his brother against Manziel's entourage and that Manziel threw a sucker punch at Gonos' brother. As Manziel described it, he and his roommate were waiting on the elevator up to their place when a drunken fan aggressively came up to Manziel and wouldn't leave him alone. They did their best to get away, and eventually Manziel got a hand from security personnel, he said.

The police were called, but no one was arrested and no charges have been filed. For their part, the Browns let Manziel know they weren't pleased that he was out at 2:30 a.m. on a Saturday when the team was flying to Atlanta for a game the next day.