I agree with Rob Vanstone's view that Jones failure to allow questions about Manziel to be answered leaves lots of question marks about the situation.

The Roughriders contend that they have not done anything wrong. In a media release issued Thursday afternoon, Jones — the head coach, general manager and vice-president of football operations — said: “The Saskatchewan Roughriders have not held or attended a workout involving Johnny Manziel. With that, I will not be commenting further on the report.”
The problem is, many people are still talking about it. ...
Even after the denials, the story remained on 3DownNation.com and the Hamilton Spectator’s website.
Such decisions are not taken lightly in the reporting business. Although there are plenty of gasbags who bleat “fake news,” that fashionable claim often turns out to be, well, fake news.
The Roughriders did not resort to applying that label, but they did respond sharply to Dunk’s latest bombshell of a report. Jones told Lawless that legal action was being considered. The team’s prepared statement came later.
Unblinking amid the mention of possible litigation, neither Dunk nor 3DownNation.com editor Drew Edwards retreated from the oft-retweeted story.
Despite what media-bashers may think, such stories are not thrown around frivolously, haphazardly and/or maliciously. Reporters’ careers are on the line. A swing and a miss on a major story can be damaging to one’s credibility, a quality Dunk and Edwards possess in abundance.
While weighing both sides of this “he said, he said” story, it would be preferable to hear directly from Jones in an interview setting that allows for direct questioning and follow-ups.
A canned response unaccompanied by a face, or a voice, leaves questions unanswered. (Could this simply be a matter of semantics? How, precisely, is a “workout” defined by the team? Were any overtures of any nature made to Manziel or his people? Is there some sort of explainable misunderstanding? Was it an innocent mistake? Et cetera.)
Jones, who I consider to be a straight shooter, certainly is not averse to addressing matters head-on and in impressive fashion.
Laudably, he flew from his native Tennessee to Regina to personally address the media — and, by extension, the fans — after the rights to marquee quarterback Darian Durant were traded to the Montreal Alouettes on Jan. 13. Only after patiently and courteously fielding every inquiry did Jones head back to the airport.
It was a spectacular display of accountability.
In the latest instance, however, nary a word has been heard.
http://leaderpost.com/sports/footbal...needed-a-voice