Peyton Hillis Suggests CIA Story Was Made Up to Harm His Free-Agency Value

Peyton Hillis is not—and has never wanted to be—a secret-agent man.

A report from ESPN's Adam Schefter earlier this week claimed that Hillis has thought about retiring from football, and that he has actually contemplated pursuing a career with the CIA. 

"It is unclear if he actually pursued a career with the CIA," wrote Schefter.

The report also claimed that the Cleveland Browns have decided not to use the franchise tag on Hillis, meaning the team is prepared to deal with him as an unrestricted free agent.

In an exclusive interview with Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer, Hillis cleared the air about the CIA report, saying it's "100 percent false." He thinks somebody came up with it to drive down his value.

"It makes me sound insane," said Hillis. "Why would you give up football to go to the CIA? It's ridiculous and it hurts what people think about you. And I think it's very unfair.''

Hillis also had this to say about the report hurting his reputation:

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Someone is trying to downplay my name. I really don't cause a big raucous. I pretty much keep my mouth quiet and go about my business. For this to happen, it was a rough year and I expected to come out here and be prepared for free agency or whatever the case may be, and to have all of this stuff come up before free agency is just ridiculous. I've always been a player that's gone out there and done my best. I've overcome a lot of obstacles and proved a lot of people wrong throughout my time. Right now, to have this stuff kind of hanging over your head, especially when it's 100 percent false, it's kind of rough. You know what kind of guy you are, you know what kind of player you are. 

"

Hillis is wrong about him not causing a "big raucous." Whether he wants to admit it or not, Hillis caused a huge raucous in Cleveland this season with his behavior. He was involved in a bitter contract dispute with Cleveland's front office, and he let it go to his head and affect his reputation among his teammates.

At one point during the season, a report came out that Hillis' teammates had turned on him. Here's what one Browns veteran told Yahoo! Sports in November:

"

I’ve never seen anything like it. 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.

"

All told, Hillis ended up playing in just 10 games and rushing for 587 yards—a far cry from his breakout season in 2010 in which he rushed for over 1,100 yards.

Hillis is no longer looking for a big pay raise. He told Cabot that he's willing to take a hometown discount to stay with the Browns.

"Yea, of course, just because I want to be a Brown," he said. "It just depends on what they want to do. When free agency gets here, I'd love to hear them out.''

Hillis also defended himself by saying he was never asking for a ridiculously lucrative contract in the first place:

"

It was nowhere near what people thought it was. I wasn't asking for $7 million a year. The Browns finally 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 back-loaded with a large amount that wasn't guaranteed. It wasn't the money, it's just how it was structured.

"

Hillis also said that the Browns have made it clear that they're willing to bring him back.

"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?" Hillis asked.

Answer: Because you're cheaper now than you were several months ago. If Hillis is going to get a contract like the one he turned down, it won't be from the Browns. If they're going to re-sign him, it's going to be with a contract that reflects his value as it stands now, not then.

Hillis' attempt to clear the air is noble, but it still sounds like he just doesn't get it.