Josh Cribbs came to Peyton Hillis' aide Friday, saying his Browns teammates never questioned the running back's commitment.
Hillis came under fire after missing a Week 3 game against the Dolphins with strep throat, which some construed as a protest against his slow-moving contract negotiations with the team. Cribbs shot that down quick.
"It's been blown out of proportion," the Browns' receiver and kick-return extraordinaire told WKRK-FM on Friday. "In the locker room, if it was a guy we that, you know, we really didn't think they deserved it, we'd all be like, 'Man, what is you doing?' You'd hear mimicking ... snickering and talking behind their back, and we'd kind of pull that guy to the side and say, 'Hey, man, just keep playing, and hopefully you'll get it one day.'
"But it's Peyton Hillis you're talking about, the guy on the Madden cover, the guy that had all the accolades last year, and he comes out ready to play and ball out every game. So, you don't question a guy like that on the team."
Cribbs said nobody doubted Hillis' condition before the Dolphins game.
"Peyton will play if he's able to play, and battle if he's able to battle ... we just need to relax on that."
Cribbs then dropped a crystal-clear tweet on the matter: "When u bleed next to a warrior in battle & their bleeding &Â battling 2, I tend not to question their toughness!!!"
We believe it's time to close the book on this sideshow.
