"Jamal Lewis, who spoke publicly for the first time Sunday since being placed on injured reserve with concussion syndrome, left the door open to return next season.

It was a dramatic turnaround from Nov. 1, when he said he planned to retire after this year. He backed that up a couple of days later, saying he wouldn't change his mind.

But Lewis, who's under contract with the Browns through 2010, admitted that he wasn't himself all season after getting knocked out cold in the opener against the Vikings. Ultimately, he was diagnosed with concussion syndrome. He's still seeing specialists in his hometown of Atlanta.

"You just don't know, really," he said about his future. "I'm just trying to let the concussion symptoms go away and get my head back to where it was and make a decision from there about my future. After I get everything straight up top, I can make a solid decision on that."

He added, "I don't know when I come back over the off-season and sit back and think about things, if this is something I want to pursue as far as not playing or move on in my life. When I can get healthy again, that will be a decision I'll have to sit back and make. That's what I'm hearing from doctors and specialists: It's something you have to work through and make a decision when I feel better. Do I feel like taking more hits or getting banged around?"

Lewis said the concussion happened "against the Vikings, when I got knocked out and was lying on the ground and couldn't move."

Ever since, he suffered "headaches, blurred vision, just not being me. Going into games week after week noticing something's not right. It was pretty scary from the start. Talking to different doctors and specialists kind of eases your mind, gives you knowledge about what's going on and how to approach the situation."

He said concussions to high-profile players such as Ben Roethlisberger and Clinton Portis aren't what prompted the exam.

"It was more of a mental thing and me knowing myself and knowing how I am and how I react," he said. "It wasn't me. That's why I ended up getting checked out."

He said he told offensive coordinator Brian Daboll that not getting a lot of carries "might have been a good thing, might have been a blessing in disguise, who knows?" "