CINCINNATI -- Remember that Thursday night two years ago when rookie Jeremy Hill, minutes after his Cincinnati Bengals were trounced by the Cleveland Browns, proceeded to tell reporters the Browns weren't very good and that they were actually "worse than I thought?"
Or what about that day last September when Hill foresaw the future, predicting better rushing performances were ahead for him?
Like it or not, those bold pronouncements appear to be a thing of the past.
Upon further inspection of some of Hill's comments during a 20-minute session with reporters earlier this week, it sounds like the once-brash, flashy running back is about to give way to a more measured and reserved version of himself. Just take a look at this quote from Hill when he was asked Monday about what was drawing his focus this offseason:
"The cliche answer. [Going] day by day. It's a long process. Like I said, it's a marathon. Obviously as competitors, we want to get out there and play right now. But it's a process, and I've gone through it before. You just got to wait. You've got to be patient and it will be right here."
Who is this man, and what has he done with Jeremy Hill?
Asked a similar question last June, Hill mentioned how strengthening his legs was his primary pre-training camp focus. He wanted to run through more tackles because even if he had a blistering 1,124 yards as a rookie, he still felt he didn't break enough tackles.
This time around, he didn't take the bait. There would be no updates from Hill about his offseason. As he enters his third year in the NFL, Hill appears to be all about putting up and shutting up.
"Everyone wants the big quote or all that stuff, but the talking is talk," Hill said to reporters. "What I've realized in this league is that you can talk and make promises and all this, but if you don't go out on the field and back it up, then it means nothing. Talking is cool and I'm answering your questions, but to me, that's really not who I am. I'm not too much of a talker. I'd rather go out and play."
Maybe this is all because of Hill's final carry of 2015, a carry upon which so much of the Bengals' latest season rested.
With a one-point lead and 1:36 remaining in January's wild-card round playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Hill was tasked with trying to gain a first down and running out the game clock. That didn't happen.
After collecting six yards, he was stripped by Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier. As soon as the ball bounced to the turf, Steelers corner Ross Cockrell fell on it, giving Pittsburgh one final possession. After Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger drove his offense into fringe field-goal territory, a pair of 15-yard penalties by Bengals defenders Vontaze Burfict and Adam Jones pushed Pittsburgh into range for a 35-yard field goal that served as the game-winner.
Hill spoke with three waves of reporters about the fumble after the game, answering similar questions and providing full, honest and thoughtful responses each time.
His comments Monday were his first since that night. This time, they lacked some of his usual charm and panache.
"Today, we can't suit up and play. We can't get riled up and make all these quotes and all this talk and all this stuff because in actuality, it's not going to do anything," Hill said. "I don't really have any message [to doubters] or something to go by. That's creating stuff. But like I said, it's just to get better every day and to keep working and listening to my coaches. All the cliche stuff. That's what I'm about."
Ladies and gentlemen, meet Jeremy Hill 2.0.