FROM 2004
Miami Dolphins fans were none too pleased when they learned of Ricky Williams' stunning decision to retire from the NFL at the ripe young age of 27. They certainly cannot be blamed for their disapproval. After all, the team's offensive scheme revolved around Williams' ability to carry the ball as much or more than any other running back in the league, and to run it well, thus keeping defensive pressure off of their quarterback. For his services, the Dolphins were paying Ricky Williams millions of dollars. No doubt they gave their All Pro running back the star treatment that his abilities warranted. So why would he suddenly up and quit at the peak of his career with minimal advance warning, and with such awful timing?
Ricky Williams provided the following explanation. "This is an opportunity to be a real role model. Everyone wants freedom. Human beings aren't supposed to be controlled and told what to do. They're supposed to be given direction and a path. Don't tell me what I can and can't do. Please. I don't feel like I have to explain myself to anyone. All I end up doing anyway is giving rebuttals, and it is boring. I don't want to do it anymore. That's it. I don't want to do this anymore. If people really care about me, that would be enough for them."
Does this make things any clearer for you? I suppose not. When understandably pressed for clarification, Ricky admitted that he had recently tested positive for marijuana for the third time. He was tired of getting caught. More than that, he was tired of having to hide his hobby (supposedly done by drinking a special liquid concoction he claims many NFL players imbibe before drug tests, though medical experts insist there is no such elixir capable of nullifying a positive marijuana test), and sick of needing to justify his actions. Ricky Williams marches to the beat of his own drummer, that's for sure. He found himself in the rather tricky situation of being a non-comformist individual trapped in the highly structured team environment of the NFL. So what was Ricky to do? He likes to get high, and he saw this as strictly his own private inclination, not the business of the NFL. But since the NFL does make such interest in illegal substances their business, Ricky Williams simply decided not to do business with them any longer. To prevent us from confusing the order of the chicken and the egg here, Ricky did stress that he failed a drug test because he wanted to quit playing football, not that he quit football because he failed a drug test.
Plenty of people want to retire early (count me among them), and if afforded the opportunity by making a ton of money in a very short amount of time, they would proceed to do just that. In this regard, it is unfair to view Ricky's decision as a particularly peculiar one. He quit a job that he no longer required to pay his bills and keep himself living comfortably. The gig he had may seem like fun and games to those of us who view it from the luxury of our couches or stadium seating, but to Ricky, it had become a grind he no longer wished to endure. Fair enough, though those whose first reaction was to label him as a nut job do have past history to support their reaction. Ricky Williams has a well earned reputation for strange behavior. Lest we forget, it was not very long ago when as a member of the New Orleans Saints, he conducted interviews while wearing his helmet. It was eventually determined that he suffers from an anxiety disorder. But since being traded to the Miami Dolphins a couple seasons ago, Ricky seemed to have grown more comfortable being in the spotlight. After three somewhat disappointing seasons in New Orleans that came on the heels of his winning the Heisman trophy in college, Mr. Williams appeared rejuvenated by a change in scenery. Over the past two seasons with the Miami Dolphins he rushed for an impressive 3,225 yards. His present looked fine and dandy, his future mighty bright. Then Ricky dropped his bombshell.
Being an NFL running back is no picnic. It takes a tremendous physical toll. Ricky Williams is not the first elite running back to retire when he seemed to be on top of his game with plenty of mileage left in his tank. Hall of Famers like Jim Brown and Barry Sanders, at just 30 and 31 respectively, did the very same thing. So too did Robert Smith, recently retiring at the age of 28. So precedents have been set. Additionally, Ricky Williams is a friend of former NFL great, Earl Campbell, who at the age of 49 is now hobbled as result of his stellar but bruising playing career. Campbell had a similar running style to that of Ricky Williams. People have therefore speculated that one of the main reasons for Ricky's early retirement decision is to avoid a similar fate. The man wants to get stoned at his leisure, and he wants to be able to walk just fine in his middle age. These are reasonable enough desires I suppose, particularly the latter.
Some fans who are angered at Ricky Williams for leaving the Dolphins in the lurch can accept his decision and his reasons for it. Far less acceptable to them is the way he went about it. Had he informed the team months or even a few weeks earlier, they could have secured the services of a quality running back to replace him in time for training camp and the preseason. Instead, the Dolphins are forced to rely on their less than All Pro caliber back-ups, or else find a washed up veteran cast off and hope for the best. The Dolphins had been entering this season with high expectations. Now their entire game plan has been annihilated, not by the typical reasons such as injuries or money hungry defection by a star to another team, but seemingly on a last minute whim. Ricky Williams has let down and no doubt infuriated his coaches, his teammates, his fans, and the man who signed his paychecks and believed he had an iron clad contract in hand to control Ricky's actions. In doing so, Williams gained freedom from an environment that he felt was oppressive, and such freedom is obviously of more value to him than the opinions of others, or all those digits on his paychecks.
I personally wish Ricky Williams the very best of luck in his future endeavors, whatever they may be. I hold no grudges against the man for choosing to follow his heart off the playing field. Perhaps by retiring young, his legacy will be of far greater value than had he gone the conventional route of playing for as long as his body held out and a team was willing to pay him to run. The large number of inner city youths who believe a career in athletics is their only ticket out of poverty and obscurity may learn from Ricky's example that there can indeed be greener pastures out there for them, and choose to seek other, more realistic goals for contributing to society and achieving success. The legendary Jim Brown was right on point when he stated the following about reaction to Ricky Williams' retirement: "The fan is going to be the fan, football is great, you got young people coming in. It's a great game and it's great entertainment and that's what's going to prevail. Let's not think that Ricky owes the fans something. He doesn't owe anybody anything because he left a lot of money on the table and a lot of fame on the table. It takes a lot of courage to do that. We also have to look at the sensitivity of this young man. He doesn't have a father. He carries a lot of economic weight and people expect him to be many things that he's not. All young people are not capable of carrying those types of loads and dealing with those types of expectations."
So you will hear no complaints from me.
Then again, I may be just a little biased since I'm a diehard Jets fan and couldn't be happier to see the Dolphins' hopes crushed. Bon voyage, Ricky.
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RICKY WILLIAMS' original retirement would not last since as you've likely deciphered about him, nothing about the guy is traditional or predictable. Years later he gave a different reason for his original retirement.
Fast forward to 2018 and Ricky Williams is back in the headlines again with a mission to give professional football players A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN.
BREAKING: Former Pro Bowler Ricky Williams announces new Freedom Football League, founded in part by former NFL players. Teams will be "partly owned by the players, partly owned by the fans, and partly owned by the operators." pic.twitter.com/sEonBKygr9— Outside The Lines (@OTLonESPN) December 6, 2018
