In the course of a single season, Peyton Hillis has gone from everyone’s favorite underdog to Cleveland malcontent. Some of Hillis’ frustrations stem from his hamstring injury, which has lingered and seems to flare up every time he tries to play. In all likelihood, the most significant contributor to his discontent is the lack of a contract extension, which Hillis believes he deserves after a monster season with the Browns a year ago. On Friday, it became clear that Hillis’ lack of focus has taken a toll on his teammates.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” an unnamed Browns player told Yahoo! Sports. “Last year, Peyton was such a positive, inspirational force on our team – but now he’s like a different guy. It’s like he’s in a funk that he can’t get out of, and it’s killing us, because we really need him. And we’ve told him that. But we’re at the point where we just don’t know what to do.”
The player told Michael Silver that eight of the team’s veterans organized an intervention-style meeting with Hillis to address his attitude issues. Apparently the final straw came when Hillis and backup quarterback Thaddeus Lewis were holding a contest to see who could hit the crossbar the most times before a loss in San Francisco.
“A few guys tried to talk to him, to make him understand the best way to go about things is to put your head down and do the best you possibly can,” tackle Joe Thomas said.
Silver said the Browns locker room has grown weary of Peyton’s attitude. The intervention reportedly had a positive outcome, but between this and Hillis missing a recent charity appearance in Cleveland it’s obvious he hasn’t been himself. Whether it’s the injury or contract that has him frustrated and not giving 100 percent, it seems as though Hillis is wearing out his welcome with the Browns fairly quickly.
