Living in the moment, Williams enjoying his time in Canada
Many star athletes have rooms filled with trophies and mementos dedicated to their own aura; the Toronto Argonauts running back has a meditation room on the second floor of the home he rents in downtown in this multicultural city.
"Well, I don't think I've necessarily ever been a passionate football player," he said to me, "or a passionate person."
Williams' cognitive dissonance produced a conundrum: Did the man waste his supreme talents by refusing to have his lost soul further corrupted by wealth and fame ... or was he courageous in his pursuit of contentment?
"I think Ricky Williams had his time in the limelight," he said. "And I think it was good for what it was worth, and that was that. I'm very happy to be where I am right now."
Besides, "Tomorrow doesn't really exist."
He walked out on the Miami Dolphins two years ago after flunking another drug test. In 2005, he unretired after serving a four-game suspension when he realized he had monumental financial and familial obligations. This season, playing in exile in Canada, the former Heisman Trophy winner has toiled in near anonymity in the financially troubled Canadian Football League following his suspension by the NFL last spring.
Though his season was uneventful and injury-marred, he raised the possibility after Sunday's 31-27 playoff victory against Winnipeg that he might return in 2007 (if the Dolphins OK it and if the Argos can afford him).
"If I came back here, you can put me anywhere. Up here, I can play offense, defense, special teams. I can do everything. I can block, play tight end, running back, receiver — even play the line. The NFL is so structured — 'You do this.' Here I can do so much."
Initially, he said he'd apply for reinstatement to the NFL but added, "Well, actually, I'll have to talk with my family and (Dolphins) Coach (Nick) Saban to really see what the best decision is for me. As of right now, it doesn't exist. Nothing does, except today.
"I mean, I could die tonight."
That is the essence of this Ricky Williams: Live in the moment, enjoy football, teammates and family. He doesn't worry about his carries, which are restricted. In essence, he's a fullback. This season, he was the best-compensated bodyguard in league history at half-a-million dollars, protecting quarterback Damon Allen, 43, from pocket assassination.
During his first two seasons in Miami, Williams touched the ball 872 times; if you add his final season in New Orleans, it swells to 1,245 touches. "I think if you look at how many times I carried the ball, it's only obvious that it would have some (debilitating effect). Although my body doesn't feel as strong as it has, I know I have the resources to keep (it) in the shape it needs to be in."
Where he once was intriguing ticket-seller on the field, he is almost indistinguishable with the Argos, whose attendance has dropped slightly. Sunday, he wasn't the best running back in the stadium, let alone the most exciting entertainer. Near the end of the game, he ran out on special teams for kickoff coverage and later stood on the Argos' benching waving a towel to incite the crowd.
He touched the football only seven times and accumulated 70 total yards. "Honestly," he said, "this season probably has been the most fun I've had playing since I've been in pro football. Part of it is my maturity."
A day earlier, Argos coach Michael "Pinball" Clemons was unequivocal when asked what he anticipated from Williams: "What I expect is maybe the greatest effort of any player on the football field."
He was right. Afterward, no one appeared more blissful than the former Texas star. He was greeted outside by his wife, Kristin, and their children, 2-month old Prince and daughter Asha, 4. Daddy's dreadlocks are long gone. So is his granite-hard physique.
They appear to have been replaced by rock-solid sensibilities. Williams says he has learned a lot in five months in Canada. He doesn't keep up with the NFL because he said he doesn't read the papers or watch television. I asked him if he missed anything.
"There's nothing I miss about anything in the whole wide world. The idea of missing something means you're not living in the moment. Every moment is good for something." And who are we to argue?
