It's not the Madden curse -- more like the Madden inconvenience.
The Peyton-Hillis-strep-throat drama -- which is starting to make us ill -- refuses to go away. Ever since the Browns running back missed Cleveland's Week 3 tilt with the Miami Dolphins because of the illness, whispers have followed that the move was related to his sticky contract negotiations with the team.
Browns receiver Josh Cribbs said nobody in the locker room doubts their teammate, but Hillis took matters into his own hands Tuesday on The Dan Patrick Show.
"It was my decision (to miss the game)," Hillis said. "It was something that hindered me -- my sickness. I lost a lot of weight and I was throwing up. I had strep throat and I was very weak, and when I came in to the stadium early that morning, I got looked at by the doctors and the training staff and decided that it was best for me if I didn't play."
Hillis continued: "I have no reason to lie about that. I just think if you really want to create a stir, you would, and that's not what kind of guy I am."
So what is his contract status?
"There isn't one right now," he said. "I still have a year left on my deal, and ... I still got to play out this year, and then whatever happens after that will happen."
Hard to imagine Hillis playing for another team (or how fans would react to that debacle), but if the Browns can't get this figured out, there will be plenty of suitors lining up for the man who spent his offseason dragging trucks around town.
