Johnny Manziel’s career in the AAF may have been shortlived but it lasted long enough for him to make a big impression on a coach that once refused to even list the former Texas A&M quarterback on the Jets’ board in the 2014 NFL Draft.

Former Jets quarterback coach David Lee recently told John Kryk of the Toronto Sun that story as an example of how against the idea he was that Manziel should even be considered a prospect for the franchise coming out of college. While that was a few years ago, Lee was shocked at the turnaround Manziel has managed to do since that time.

Lee no longer coaches in the NFL but he was recently the quarterback’s coach and offensive coordinator of the Memphis AAF franchise. After only a few weeks of working with Manziel in the AAF, Lee is already singing the praises of the former Heisman Trophy winner.

“I’m hoping and praying he gets another chance. My short experience with him was tremendous,” Lee said to the Toronto Sun. “I really, really like Johnny as a person. Boy, he’s got a fire in his heart. He loves football. Gosh, he loves it. And he wants to be good … He had been through hell and back from the time he left Texas A&M until the time he rolled into Memphis.”

One interesting aspect of that comment is the fact that Lee notes Manziel has been through a lot since being drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Browns in the 2014 NFL Draft. Many players would have been broken by that experience but according to the coach that most recently worked with Manziel, it’s done the opposite and actually strengthened him as a player and person.

If that’s an accurate assessment, NFL teams would be wise to at least invite Manziel to training camp this offseason. Considering the lack of talented passers in the NFL, there’s a good chance Manziel has more talent than most backups in the league and he’s still young enough to have potential to grow as a player. If Manziel has really turned the corner and is ready to put in the work necessary to excel at the game’s highest level, he’s worth at the very least a training camp tryout.