Williams blows smoke

He entered the pros as the guy with the flowing dreadlocks, and now you wonder if Ricky Williams has made another hair-brained decision.

Over the weekend, the enigmatic standout running back of the Miami Dolphins sent shock waves through south Florida, not to mention the NFL, by abruptly retiring at age 27.

So why would Williams walk away from the game in the prime of a career that was on a Hall of Fame track? Well, it depends who you're talking to.

On the surface, Williams hated being in the spotlight, hated the regimented lifestyle of the NFL and hated being treated differently by an adoring public because he was star athlete. He was indifferent to the riches he earned.

By leaving, Williams is leaving over $3.5 million on the table. But that's no big deal to a man who, by one account, kept thousands of dollars in an unlocked glove box in an unlocked car, often giving the cash away to strangers.

To the media, Williams was a curiosity. You remember him posing for the cover of a national magazine wearing a wedding dress with former New Orleans coach Mike Ditka, who had just traded his entire 1998 draft for the running back. Then there was Williams' annoying habit of refusing to take off his helmet while being interviewed by reporters while he was lying on the ground.

Some insist Williams' shyness was a byproduct of the social anxiety disorder with which he was afflicted. But while being a loner, he was also a bright and interesting guy who could converse on a number of topics beyond football.

There are some people who are applauding Williams for having the guts to punt a job where he was so unhappy. They point out that in a time when so many athletes simply take the money and mail it in on the field, at least Williams is being true to himself.

Sure, he is doing what so many of us wish we could do by telling the boss to take this job and shove it. But is Williams really genuine when he informs the Dolphins that they can do a Johnny Paycheck with his paycheck?

A look deeper into this reveals some smoke and mirrors, with the accent on the smoke. It seems that Williams' other love is with the wacky weed.

It was widely reported that he tested positive for marijuana for the second time, which if upheld would have resulted in a four-game suspension this season.

Williams has never denied his dope smoking and has unabashedly admitted using a special liquid to get around the NFL's drug testing.

So now he's content to hanging out in Asia, getting high on something other than life. Instead of being mentioned in the same breath as Dolphin legends Dan Marino and Larry Csonka, Williams now gets lumped in with Cheech and Chong and half the U.S. Olympic snow boarding team.

Let's also not forget that his timing stunk. If he does this a week ago, the Dolphins can make a play for Eddie George. By doing it over the weekend, he hung his teammates out to dry and shoved his coach Dave Wannstedt towards the unemployment line.

I don't see a rebel or a heroic figure, only a monster talent letting his career go up in smoke.