The Facts: Following up on the ongoing story. ... Throughout the past season, Hillis has wavered about whether he wants to continue playing football, and even considered joining the CIA, according to team sources. It is unclear if he actually pursued a career with the CIA. Hillis told Browns coaches as recently as the end of the season that he was contemplating retirement, though it now looks as if he will continue playing, the sources said.

Diehards Line:The Browns have made the decision not to use their franchise tag on Hillis, and it doesn't seem like a reach to believe the information above is one of the reasons why. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Hillis, who fired his agent this week, has felt defeated throughout his time in football, whether it was being benched at Arkansas in favor of Felix Jones and Darren McFadden, being traded away from the Broncos, or being unable to procure the long-term deal he desired in Cleveland. It led him to tell Cleveland's coaches that he didn't know whether he wanted to play football anymore. While he now intends to continue playing, reports like this are bound to have an impact on his value. Browns GM Tom Heckert told ESPN on Wednesday that the team would like to keep Hillis if the contract is reasonable. "If we can work something out with [Hillis] we will," Heckert said. "Did he have some rough patches during the season? Yes. Were there stretches where things were blown out of proportion? Yes. Honestly, I feel like a lot of that was blown up in the media. Now, of course things will still come down to the money, but we'll just have to wait and see. ..." Stay tuned.