DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Hillis Rumors Catch Shurmur Off Guard

Kinda weird that Schefter would report something so specific, and Shurmur would completely deny it. (usually there would be some kind of dance around, but he flat out said that he never discussed such a thing with Hillis, and that it was "news to him" the Hillis was even, supposedly, contemplating retirement)

Peyton Hillis retirement, CIA rumors catch Cleveland Browns coach Pat Shurmur off-guard | cleveland.com
http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2012/03/peyton_hillis_retirement_cia_r.html

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Browns coach Pat Shurmur said Thursday that running back Peyton Hillis never told him he was contemplating retiring -- or considering a career in the CIA.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that, according to a Browns source, Hillis told Browns coaches as recently as the end of the season that he was considering hanging it up and was pondering a CIA career during the season.

"Really? That's news to me," said Shurmur at the Greater Cleveland Auto Show at the International Exposition Center in Cleveland. "I'm one of the coaches he didn't tell, obviously."

Shurmur said he had frequent discussions with Hillis throughout the season, "and we never discussed any of those topics, for sure. Beyond that, I really can't comment. It's somebody saying something, but as far as he and I, we never discussed his retirement."

Shurmur said the team hasn't yet slammed the door on franchising Hillis, although a source said it's "very unlikely." That decision would have to be made by 4 p.m. Monday and would mean a $7.7 million payday for Hillis in 2012. Most likely, Hillis will hit the free-agent market March 13.

"We've got a couple days before we've got to make that call," Shurmur said. "We've had discussions about what we're going to do, but we haven't finally decided."

Hillis parted ways with his third agent in a year in Kennard McGuire and could have a new one by Monday.

Shurmur said the Browns might still use the franchise tag on a player. Another candidate is kicker Phil Dawson, although that appears unlikely, too.

"Yeah, I think we could [use it]," Shurmur said. "We'll see how that goes."

As for the possibility of the Browns re-signing Hillis, Shurmur said: "When he was in there, he played good football for us. Now the business of sport takes over here and we'll have to see what happens."

"Hillis is going to retire and join the CIA" would be an awesome fake leak to discredit a reporter. I like Schefter though, he usually tweets accurate news before anyone else.

It was Mort!

This whole things with Hillis is bizzar....every story has something that makes a person go "Really" hummmmmm or thats diffrent....

The dude is starting to scare me...he just fired his fourth agent and now this.

This thing about retiring and becoming a cia agent is simply a rumor, so I'm not going to put too much stock in what some writer claims Hillis said.

Maybe Hillis is going represent himself to cut out the agent's share?

From the look of ol Shurmur on the sidelines, there is quite a bit that catches him off gaurd.

Hillis wants to be agent "Double naught 7".

Good one.
now be prepared for the barrage from the comedic challenged.

Adam doesn't have the connections he once had. Chances are his browns source is the agent for another free agent running back.

lol. yeah, this CIA thing is so outlandish. It can't possibly be true... can it?

I mentioned this to my wife, and she thought that maybe all this stuff is really getting to him. Like maybe he's on the verge of a breakdown or something. She suggested as a possibility that maybe he was firing his agents after they recommended treatment or something. If he really did say these things, I hope someone steps in and gets him some help before he gets pulled over on his trike with a shotgun in a guitar case around his back.

At this point, there shouldn't be anything about Hillis that catches anyone off-guard.

Can we tender Hillis? Or is that for RFA's only?

RFA only.

Once the new CBA was ratified by the NFLPA last year, many RFA became UFA, ASAP. lol

The new CBA changed the terms of RFA , so that where a player with 3, 4, or 5 years service was still an RFA in the uncapped year, that reduced back to 4 years with the new CBA.

love the Delonte reference

NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!


We don't need his knees going out on Day 1 of camp!

lol they didn't allow Bentley to have 00... his request was denied.

Strep throat? Hamstring? "Surprise" Wedding?

Fine work, Agent Hillis.

When is he going to step and slip on the football like Bentley??? I still have flashbacks dealing with the word patella.

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2012/03/exclusive_browns_rb_peyton_hil.html

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Browns running back Peyton Hillis told The Plain Dealer on Friday that a report stating he told Browns coaches he contemplated retiring as recently as the end of the season and pondered joining the CIA was absolutely false.

"It makes me sound insane," Hillis said.

Set to become an unrestricted free

agent March 13, Hillis said he thinks someone gave the story to ESPN to try to devalue him in free agency.

"That's ridiculous," he said. "I never one time mentioned anything to any coach about retirement or joining the CIA or anything like that. It's 100 percent false. I don't know who came up with a story like that, but they should've come up with a better one to make it sound more legit."

He acknowledged the report has hurt his reputation nationally -- that and the fact he fired his third agent in a year Wednesday.

"Someone is trying to downplay my name," he said. "I really don't cause a big ruckus. I pretty much keep my mouth quiet and go about my business. It was a rough year, and I expected to come out here and be prepared for free agency or whatever the case may be. Right now, to have this stuff kind of hanging over your head, especially when it's 100 percent false, it's kind of rough."

Hillis said coach Pat Shurmur saying Thursday night that he never heard anything about Hillis' retirement or joining the CIA proves his point.

"Whoever came up with the story should get their facts straight," he said.

"You'd think if one coach would know, the other would know. That tells you right there it's false."

He said he has also been portrayed as erratic because he fired Kennard McGuire, his third agent in a year, on the eve of free agency. Hillis has yet to decide on a new agent and must wait five business days before hiring one. McGuire was the agent who said he advised Hillis not to play with strep throat, which made some teammates feel it was a contract-related absence.

"My priority was to find an agent that could get a deal done with the Browns," said Hillis. "I've said all along that this was where I wanted to be, and I wanted to work with someone who had a good relationship with the Browns. We kept Kennard all year, but things weren't getting done between him and the Browns."

Hillis said he fired his first agent, Jimmy Sexton, because he was interested in more from the marketing side. "Jimmy was a great agent," he said. "There was nothing wrong. [But] with the whole Madden cover thing, if they hadn't reached my brother [and business manager], Kyle, I probably wouldn't be on the Madden 12 cover."

He said he then signed with Oklahoma-based agent Kelli Masters for a brief time.

"She had a good head on her shoulders and she worked really hard for me, but we felt at the time she hadn't done too many big contracts," Hillis said. "We felt like this was the biggest time of our lives, and we've got to make sure we had the right person going in. It was nothing against her."

Hillis said he showed up for training camp and tried not to talk at all about the contract, but that he kept getting asked about it. "My plan was just to come in, work hard and play hard like I always do," he said.

He said things all went downhill when he sat out the Miami game with strep.

"I showed up at [Cleveland Browns Stadium] sick, I had lost 15 pounds, I had a fever, I was throwing up and delirious and they sent me home," he said. "And before I knew it, people were questioning my toughness. The Browns were the ones that sent me home. That was really tough. I've played with broken ribs, a sprained [medial collateral ligament], a pulled hamstring and stuff like that. No matter how bad it made me look, I still played. After a while, it all took its toll. That was a really tough time."

Despite the tumultuous season, Hillis would love to return to the Browns, and Browns General Manager Tom Heckert confirmed this week they would re-sign him at the right price.

"I've always loved this city, and I still do love it, and I still want to play for the Cleveland Browns," Hillis said. "I'm not sure who wants me there and who doesn't want me there. It's out of my hands at this point. They've said they might want to re-sign me. If I was this horrible person, if I wasn't tough and if I was that big of a mental case, why would they still want to sign me?"

He said he would even take a hometown discount to remain here.

"Yeah, of course [I would]," he said. "It just depends on what they want to do. When free agency gets here, I'd love to hear them out."

He said he expects he will hit the free-agent market March 13 at 4 p.m.

"At this point, it looks like I'll have to," he said. "I heard they just franchised [kicker] Phil Dawson -- and I'm happy for him. I think they want me to test the free-agent market and see what I can do out there."

He said he's not sure which teams will be interested in him.

"I would think there would be [teams]," he said. "I think I've proven myself to be a hard-nosed back that can get the tough yardage, and I think some teams will appreciate that."

He said reports that he was asking for the moon were erroneous.

"It was nowhere near what people thought it was," he said. "I wasn't asking for $7 million a year. At one point, the Browns offered $25 million or $26 million over four or five years, but it was only about $1.2 million a year in the first three years. Then it was backloaded with a large amount that wasn't guaranteed. It wasn't the money, it's just how it was structured."

He said he knows he can put 2011 behind him and return to the Hillis that lit up Cleveland in 2010 with 1,177 rushing yards and 11 TDs on the ground.

"I love this game," he said. "I'm in the prime of my career. I think I have a lot of potential, and I don't see myself slowing down anytime soon. I'd love to get back in a Browns uniform, but wherever I go, I think I'll make a splash."