2012 NFL Free Agents: Cleveland Browns Can't Afford to Re-Sign Peyton Hillis

Peyton Hillis had a fall from grace faster than any athlete who did not get into trouble with the law. He was a superstar following the 2010 season, but his drop in production this year is a clear sign that the Cleveland Browns need to find a new running back into the future. 

Despite all Hillis' problems last season, the Browns are open to bringing him back, according to Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

"

The Browns would like to re-sign running back Peyton Hillis, who worked his way back into the team's good graces over the final six weeks of the season, a league source said.

Hillis, who becomes an unrestricted free agent March 13, showed the Browns enough over the final six games -- both on and off the field -- that they'd like to have him back at the right price. The Browns can re-sign their own free agents at any time.

"

How much stock should be put into a small sample size like six weeks? This is an important season for the Browns; with two first-round draft picks they can build the foundation for the future. 

They have a lot of areas they have to address, most of them on offense, in order to get back to respectability. 

Hillis doesn't seem to be a fit with this franchise anymore. He was content when he was the only offensive player, and got all the headlines, as well as the cover of the Madden video game. But when he struggled, he seemed to check out mentally. 

That kind of attitude and mentality is going to have an adverse effect on the rest of the locker room, particularly the young players that the Browns have brought in and will bring in. 

It shouldn't matter that Hillis played the good soldier at the end of the season, especially when there was so much he did before it that was not what you expect to see from a leader. 

Hillis is just 26 years old, so it is possible that he just had a bad year and is capable of getting back to his 2010 form. But it is also plausible to assume that he had a career-year two years ago and will never be that player. 

Whatever lies ahead for Hillis, it should not be with the Browns. This franchise has suffered enough since returning to the NFL in 1999. It is time for them to start anew on offense to start contending in the AFC North. 

Follow @adamwells1985