Ricky Williams

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I always love it when I hear about athletes retiring at their prime, passing up millions of dollars, if only to see the mystified reactions.

The Dolphins were going to be mediocre again this year anyway.

― Gear! (Gear!), Monday, 26 July 2004 19:58 (twenty-one years ago)

isnt this dude insane? did anyone else see him on cribs trying really hard to act normal?

seems nice enough tho.. and hes rich anyway so retiring at 27 cant be too bad.

― bill stevens (bscrubbins), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:02 (twenty-one years ago)

I was going to carry him over in my fantasy league as my franchise player this season. ARGH.

Now I've got Torry Holt or Tom Brady to keep. Leanin' toward Brady.

― Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:11 (twenty-one years ago)

rumor has it that his unwillingness to leave off the ganja played a big role in his decision

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:12 (twenty-one years ago)

I'd keep Holt, personally. Tom Brady is a surefire HOFer and might win a couple more Super Bowls but his stats fantasy-wise are closer to the middle-of-the-pack.

― Gear! (Gear!), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:13 (twenty-one years ago)

from what I've heard the ganja had little to do with it, and was just seized upon as a juicy angle by the press. he's been doing it for years, as have many, many professional atheletes who know that it's not very difficult to get around the drug screens.

― oops (Oops), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:15 (twenty-one years ago)

God bless him. I always figured that's what I'd do - make enough to be comfortable forever and retire to do something I actually liked or cared about. The thought of people enjoying nothing but their sport, wanting to do nothing but play it 'til they can't is kind of depressing to me.

Go forth Ricky, light a blunt and fly to Asia.

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:18 (twenty-one years ago)

agreed on Holt, though of course it depends on where you're picking

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:22 (twenty-one years ago)

this weed smokery makes his social anxiety issues clear to me now. HE WAS TOO FUCKING HIGH TO FUNCTION.

― bill stevens (bscrubbins), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:34 (twenty-one years ago)

Everyone keeps talking about how he smokes the blunt, but what about how painfully shy he is? How he wouldn't take his helmet off in the locker room and couldn't look his teammates in the eye?

I don't want to sound like the guy on one of the political threads who stated that Bush mispronounces words sometimes because he's so shy, but if I had some serious introversion issues, I'd probably not look forward to Sunday afternoons in front of millions, either.

― Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:49 (twenty-one years ago)

If loving the blunt was a big factor in his retiring, then shouldn't like half the league be considering retiring?

― oops (Oops), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:51 (twenty-one years ago)

From what I've read it's been implied Ricky hated the "blind adoration/go team" aspect of sports, though he did like (not love) the game. He was also uncomfortable about the Saints trading all those draft picks for him, putting everything on his shoulders, essentially.

― Gear! (Gear!), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:53 (twenty-one years ago)

The way people on ESPN and other media are talking about this makes *me* hate the sports world and want to retire. It's only a game, people!

― oops (Oops), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:54 (twenty-one years ago)

I like the thought that everyone back here is talking about Ricky and how they're going to try and get him to come back, and he's relaxing on some tropical island or hanging out in some chateau in Europe.

― Gear! (Gear!), Monday, 26 July 2004 20:57 (twenty-one years ago)

Oops OTM. I didn't hear anyone on ESPN Radio defend him today, except for the Miami journalist who kind of knows him.

I think the weed emphasis thing is partially his fault. If he hadn't mentioned his masking agent, everyone would have chalked it up partially the second violation, but not made as big of a deal.

(Also pissed at all the talk show hosts talking about how they need to redo their testing procedures to account for this - it's weed, you morons. Who cares?)

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Monday, 26 July 2004 21:13 (twenty-one years ago)

Middle America?

― The Dreaded Rear Admiral (Leee), Monday, 26 July 2004 21:23 (twenty-one years ago)

i don't think middle america would care if he were on its team and playing well

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Monday, 26 July 2004 21:29 (twenty-one years ago)

perhaps he should harness his talents towards a non-team sport.

― hstencil (hstencil), Tuesday, 27 July 2004 02:30 (twenty-one years ago)

i saw him on oprah, he got over the shyness.
maybe he'll make investment commercials with barry sanders.
will it be like in detroit where every nsummer the rumour starts that barry is coming back.

― keith m (keithmcl), Tuesday, 27 July 2004 02:40 (twenty-one years ago)

Five will get you ten that he will have second thoughts about his decision. As a Pats fan, I hope not, though.

As a human being, I would like to see him come back.

― jim wentworth (wench), Tuesday, 27 July 2004 02:53 (twenty-one years ago)

Has he said anything about the timing of his announcement? (E.g. that it was 6 months in the offing but didn't bother to tell the team till last week.)

― The Dreaded Rear Admiral (Leee), Friday, 30 July 2004 04:37 (twenty-one years ago)

ihttp://www.grifterrec.com/midgets/pic/i_sleepers.jpg

― jack cole (jackcole), Friday, 30 July 2004 06:03 (twenty-one years ago)

I have to think that Williams seeing how bad a shape Earl Campbell is in these days probably makes him wonder if he wants to have to carry the ball that many times for another season. Wannstedt over used him and gave him more carries in two years than any other RB in the NFL. Being from Texas, he has seen Campbell go from having to walk with a cane to being wheelchair bound and not even be 50 years old. Football is hard on all players, but especially hard on running backs. Barry Sanders also retired at about the same time before camp and got a bunch of guff for doing so.

― earlnash, Friday, 30 July 2004 09:01 (twenty-one years ago)

yeah, earl campbell was unstoppable. i remember hearing a quote from some opposing coach about how 'we can't really stop him, but if we put four helmets on him every time he carries the ball, we'll at least get him out of the league in a few years.'

more in the papers today about ricky and weed, fwiw

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 14:54 (twenty-one years ago)

i think the fact that rickey had just failed his THIRD drug test and would've faced suspension factored into the timing of his decision. it's weird the nfl let him take drugs for his social anxiety disorder but the when he tries to self-medicate they start docking his pay.

― otto midnight (otto midnight), Friday, 30 July 2004 15:03 (twenty-one years ago)

The only thing that makes me a little sad about this is that he's just built for football and is so freaking talented. It is too bad the pro life hasn't agreed with him.

― mcd (mcd), Friday, 30 July 2004 15:11 (twenty-one years ago)

Now they're making a fuss that he owes them a big chunk of his signing bonus. If I were him, I'd have taken the four-game suspension, failed another one for the lifetime suspension and said "fuck playing some football."

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Friday, 30 July 2004 15:13 (twenty-one years ago)

He says that he had made up his mind about quitting football and then flunked the drug test. Either way, it's a damn shame. Barry Sanders has more of my sympathy, though.

― Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Friday, 30 July 2004 15:18 (twenty-one years ago)

Now they're making a fuss that he owes them a big chunk of his signing bonus

yeah well the bonus is prorated over the life of his contract, if he breaks the contract he loses that money. just as if the dolphins had cut him they would not owe him his salary but would be obligated to pay the signing bonus.

― otto midnight (otto midnight), Friday, 30 July 2004 15:30 (twenty-one years ago)

Right, but if he 'accidentally' flunked the drug test a couple more times, the situation's a little more cloudy.

― miloauckerman (miloauckerman), Friday, 30 July 2004 15:32 (twenty-one years ago)

Ricky seems cool, I don't blame him a bit. I hate to think he had to quit because he's such a blazer, though. I prefer to believe that he just thinks life might be more interesting without it and he can afford to do it.

I keep thinking of the Brian Williams/Bison Dele story though. He just kind of quit the pro athlete thing to walk the land, but ended up killed by the parasitic brother he supported, apparently. It's an interesting story.

― Hunter (Hunter), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:08 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't think that Ricky Williams is even close to being in the same boat as Bison Dele.

― Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:16 (twenty-one years ago)

same "boat"!!

― Monetizing Eyeballs (diamond), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:25 (twenty-one years ago)

"Yeah, I flunked that third drug test on purpose. I didn't even feel like playing football anymore. F that."

The weed speaking, possibly?

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:33 (twenty-one years ago)

Christ on a bike. When someone admits to liking to drink do people view every action they take to be a result of that liking?

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:41 (twenty-one years ago)

*burp* yeah

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:44 (twenty-one years ago)

If they keep getting DUIs, then yeah.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:46 (twenty-one years ago)

He's gotten DUIs?

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:50 (twenty-one years ago)

Christ on a bike. When someone admits to liking to drink do people view every action they take to be a result of that liking?

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:52 (twenty-one years ago)

Thank you, Monetizing. I'll be here all week.

― Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:53 (twenty-one years ago)

He's gotten DUIs?

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:54 (twenty-one years ago)

IOW, are you comparing Ricky failing drug screens to getting DUIs?

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:55 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't know what "IOW" means, but yes, I was comparing the two violations.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:56 (twenty-one years ago)

IOW = netsp34k for i.e.

― The Dreaded Rear Admiral (Leee), Friday, 30 July 2004 20:58 (twenty-one years ago)

In Other Words?

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Are atheletes screened for alcohol use? Did Ricky get caught DWI on marijuana? Cause those are the only two accurate comparisons.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:02 (twenty-one years ago)

oops otm

― The Dreaded Rear Admiral (Leee), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:04 (twenty-one years ago)

Smoking marijuana: Can lead to an infraction that limits one's ability to play football in the NFL.

Drinking alcohol: Can lead to an infraction that limits one's ability to drive.

It didn't seem like it initially needed all this discussion, but there you have it. The original point that I was making was that marijuana is widely known for limiting one's motivation, so it is not as far fetched as you'd like to believe that this may have had some factor in his decision to continue playing football.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:08 (twenty-one years ago)

The original point that I was making was that marijuana is widely known for limiting one's motivation

This is bullshit.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:10 (twenty-one years ago)

and it doesn't technically limit one's ability to play football in the same way alcohol limits one's ability to drive. it limits one's ELIGIBILITY, yes. the fact that he has smoked his entire professional career (and before that, I assume) shows that it didn''t have a detrimental effect on his abilities.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:12 (twenty-one years ago)

IOW, if a hypothetical someone gets a third DUI and then announces their desire to stop driving automobiles, it's pretty likely that they won't be easily believed. That's all I'm saying.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:12 (twenty-one years ago)

How can you say that someone being high during a football game affect them? If it doesn't affect them, then why would they bother smoking at all?

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:14 (twenty-one years ago)

The two are not the same. Failing a drug test is a rule violation that has no real practical basis, ie getting high regularly is not shown to have any effect on one's ability to play football. Driving while drunk is a legal violation which has a very practical basis, ie getting drunk then driving has been shown to have a negative effect on one's ability to drive. Apples, oranges.

xpost liking to smoke pot does not necessarily mean that one is high at all moments, just as liking to drink does not mean that one is drunk at all moments. But, assuming he was stoned out of his mind during every game, did you notice any ill effects from it?

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:18 (twenty-one years ago)

how about we stop here and agree that this whole argument is a function of the misguided "war on drugs"?

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:20 (twenty-one years ago)

that's what i'm saying!

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Personally speaking, I have noticed that smoking weed often diverts my attention from other things that are much more important. A scientist has yet to measure my changes in chemical makeup, but I tend to trust my own experiences.

All of that is irrelevant though, because if you're testing positive for anything that the NFL declares illegal and then you say that it is irrelevant because you're quitting anyway, it is pretty likely that these actions aren't going to be viewing positively, regardless of what studies say.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:26 (twenty-one years ago)

Agreed.

However, drinking also diverts one's attention from things that are much more important. This effect has not been shown to continue after one has sobered up. Same with marijuana.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:29 (twenty-one years ago)

By the way, the whole, "get busted three times and banned for life" as a strategy to avoid repaying the signing bonus - which someone suggested upthread - would not fly, I'm guessing. I mean, I'm pretty sure that the Dolphins - and every NFL team - have protected themselves with contract stipulations regarding drug use and other forms of misconduct. I'm just guessing.

― Monetizing Eyeballs (diamond), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:33 (twenty-one years ago)

dean: Agreed.

However, drinking also diverts one's attention from things that are much more important. This effect has not been shown to continue after one has sobered up. Same with marijuana.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:34 (twenty-one years ago)

haha i'm personally so unmotivated that i can't tell the difference on the extremely rare occasions that i smoke

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 21:36 (twenty-one years ago)

There are A LOT of professional athletes (hell, a lot of *insert any profession here*) who smoke A LOT of weed, and have done so their entire adult lives. If amotivational syndrome was valid, how did they make it to and thrive at such a high level?

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:10 (twenty-one years ago)

However, drinking also diverts one's attention from things that are much more important. This effect has not been shown to continue after one has sobered up. Same with marijuana.

How do explain addiction, then? Are you saying that "alcoholism" is not a disease or a pattern, but just coincidental behavior?

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:13 (twenty-one years ago)

(xp) Also, I think it is unfair to assume that all professions require the same amount of motivation to result in success, but I do agree that one probably could do quite a bit of drugs off the field and still be successful. Your main argument is with the NFL considering marijuana something worth testing for, which is definitely not a viewpoint that I am defending.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:21 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't believe there is such a thing as "alcoholism", as the term is commonly used. There is addiction and addictive personalities. Very often, an intoxicant is the focus of addiction. (other times, the focus is something that is not typically labelled an intoxicant, but functions very similarly to one, eg sex, gambling, extreme sports, etc). Alcohol is merely the most widely available and accepted intoxicant in the majority of cultures on Earth.

Obviously if someone is addicted to marijuana or alcohol, they become obsessed with it and are give the proper amount of focus to "important" things.

xpost No of course not all professions require the same amount of motivation. Not to be rude, but I don't see your point here. Becoming a professional athlete seems like it would be on the high end of the motivation-required-to-succeed spectrum.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:24 (twenty-one years ago)

haha, i just HAD to repeat this - I don't think that Ricky Williams is even close to being in the same boat as Bison Dele.

-- Pleasant Plains (acewhiske...), July 30th, 2004 5:16 PM. (Pleasant Plains) (later) - i haven't laffed this hard in a omg wtf lol way since that girl got hit by a bus in mean girls. bravo good sir!

― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:29 (twenty-one years ago)

I was referring to this statement "There are A LOT of professional athletes (hell, a lot of *insert any profession here*) who smoke A LOT of weed, and have done so their entire adult lives. If amotivational syndrome was valid, how did they make it to and thrive at such a high level?" by very quickly trying to say that "success" is very relative and not always an indication of one's drive ... OF course, there are many factors in this which aren't worth enumerating. Mostly, I am concerned that one's level of success can often hide the suggestion that someone is not living up to their potential, which can result from drug use.

― dean? (deangulberry), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:31 (twenty-one years ago)

and are give the proper amount of focus to "important" things.

er, got caught between two ways of putting that. should be either "do not give" or "are not giving". both are kind of awkward, but whatever.

xpost talk of success and potential gives me the heebie-jeebies. probably cause I'm a pothead!

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:33 (twenty-one years ago)

SHOCKAH!

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:34 (twenty-one years ago)

(j/k no offense!)

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:35 (twenty-one years ago)

i was j/k too. i'm not really. no, really. my best friends are though, which means I smoke often, but I never buy it or think about it when it's out of sight. (outta sight, maaaan!)

― oops (Oops), Friday, 30 July 2004 22:44 (twenty-one years ago)

http://msn.foxsports.com/story/2642026

xpost - never buying it is the way to go.

― bill stevens (bscrubbins), Thursday, 5 August 2004 17:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Way to make himself look like even more of an idiot.

― dean? (deangulberry), Thursday, 5 August 2004 18:05 (twenty-one years ago)

If Ricky Williams comes to Oakland I will donate my urine to his cause.

Oakland needs a new Rick(e)y.

― Kris (aqueduct), Thursday, 5 August 2004 18:51 (twenty-one years ago)

It is looking more like Rickey didn't want to play longer in Miami for Wannstedt.

― earlnash, Thursday, 5 August 2004 19:50 (twenty-one years ago)

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