Johnny Manziel's comeback tour began away from the field in February with an interview in which he revealed that he's finally sober and getting treated for bipolar disorder. More than a month later, Manziel's comeback tour finally hit the field. On Thursday, he surprisingly threw at University of San Diego's pro day with 13 NFL teams watching. Afterwards, he continued with his image rehabilitation by discussing the changes he's made in an interview with Sports Illustrated's Bruce Feldman.

Manziel -- who flamed out from the NFL after two disastrous seasons in Cleveland due to his poor play, excessive partying, and alleged assault of his then-girlfriend (the charges were ultimately dismissed after he took a plea deal) -- told Feldman that he understands that this is "the last of the last chances" to demonstrate he's a changed man. So, in order to do so, he says he's cut certain people out of his life and, in his words, gotten "selfish" in what he's doing.

"I let them know, 'Hey, I gotta be selfish in what I'm doing. I gotta do this for me. Listen, I'm not gonna block your number but if I don't text you back and I don't answer your calls, don't be offended. I'll call you when I get bored and I wanna say what's up. But don't invite me on any trips. Don't tell me to go to Texas to go to [friggin'] Sixth Street. None of that.' The people I know that are in my life that by no fault of their own are going to want to do something that I just don't have the luxury of doing anymore. When I first got in the league, did I have some leeway? Sure I did, but I have exhausted all leeway and all second chances. This isn't the second chance. This is the 35th chance. This is the last of the last chances to show people that I've made a drastic change in my life, and it's for the better and I'm happy with where I'm at.

"I need to be safe for myself. I've let multiple people know—guys that had been around me for years, I reached out to a multitude of people and said, 'Listen, I've never been selfish in my football career. I've always flown you guys to every game. I've gotten you tickets. I've done everything. But for now, I'm selfish with what I need to do because I don't have room for you guys to come around and for me to get off on a bad path. It just can't happen. I'm happy. I'm married and I'm doing what I'm doing. My wife is my buffer with all of the bulls---. She doesn't let me get away with any of the B.S. She's just straight to the point. She has my best interest at heart, and there's times where I don't like it. I'm still a stubborn guy—I don't like listening all the time. I've had a lot better sense of being able to sit back and reflect, even if it's a daily reflection. I have that backstop. I'm working with good people and I'm working the majority of the day." 

At this point, Manziel, who previously said that he'll play for free, just wants to be invited to training camp and maybe play in a preseason game.

"At the end of the day, if I was never to make it back to the NFL, I'd be completely happy to be clean and sober. But is that what I want and I aspire to? No. But at the same time I can live knowing what I've accomplished football-wise because I know there's more to life than just a game. I didn't always see that before. I felt it had to be Super Bowls and $100 million contracts and the whole works. Keep it simplistic: Let's try to get a contract offer to go to training camp. Clean and sober with a contract offer to go to training camp and I'm on Cloud Nine. Play in a preseason game and I'm on Cloud 39."

It still seems unlikely that an NFL team will even invite him to training camp this summer. It's one thing for Manziel to talk about the changes he's made. It's an entirely other thing for him to demonstrate that he's made those changes, which he acknowledged. As Manziel himself said, "I can sit here and talk to you guys all day. I'm a great talker. I have media savvy." 

An NFL team probably won't read an interview and decide that Manziel's suddenly a changed person. They won't see that he's gotten married and conclude he has suddenly matured. They'll need actual evidence of his changes before they invite him to play for their team, which is why many have suggested that he should go play in the CFL for a season to prove that he's ready to handle the responsibilities that come with being a professional quarterback.

"And until I get into [an NFL] building and I'm able to show that, it's all just talk," Manziel said. "It's all just me saying that I'm different. Now, I know I am."

Furthermore, Manziel also needs to prove that he's talented enough to succeed as a football player. In eight starts and 15 total appearances with the Browns after they made him a first-round pick, he completed 57 percent of his passes, averaged 6.5 yards per attempt, threw seven touchdowns and seven interceptions, and posted a 74.4 passer rating. He added 259 rushing yards and one rushing score.

To get himself prepared, he told Feldman that he's throwing for two hours Monday-Friday at UCLA, working at the gym with his trainer, meeting with a psychologist and psychiatrist, and getting blood work done to make sure he's taking care of his body. He said that he's in as good of shape as he was when he won the Heisman Trophy at Texas A&M. He thought Thursday's throwing session "went good." Next, he'll participate in the Spring League to continue his audition. 

If you want to read more of what Manziel had to say, go read Sports Illustrated's story by clicking right here.