MONTREAL - Johnny Manziel's CFL debut was a disaster as the Hamilton Tiger-Cats picked off four passes en route to a 50-11 romp over the Montreal Alouettes on Friday night.
Jeremiah Masoli threw touchdown passes to Brandon Banks and Jalen Saunders and ran one in himself, while Alex Green ran in a pair and Sean Thomas Erlington scored on a blocked punt for Hamilton (3-4), which ended a three-game losing streak. Lirim Hajrullahu added three field goals.
Backup quarterback Vernon Adams had a late touchdown and Boris Bede kicked a field goal for Montreal (1-6), which has lost four in a row.
Despite major hype, Manziel's debut drew only 18,576 to Percival Molson Stadium. They saw the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner's first pass attempt intercepted by Larry Dean -- the first of four picks he would throw in the first half alone.
The former Cleveland Brown, playing his first real game since December 2015, showed flashes of talent, scrambling away from a persistent pass rush and throwing on the run. A 31-yard completion to Eugene Lewis in the second quarter was particularly impressive, but he was picked off by Mike Daly two plays later to kill a promising drive.
He was replaced by Adams in the fourth quarter, having completed 11 of 20 passes for 104 yards.
