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"I'm on the team right now. What's going to happen, I can't really say," Williams said while attending the launch of teammate Chris Chambers new charity foundation last Friday. "I'm a spiritual person, so I believe that whatever happens is God's will.
"Whatever it is, I'll make the best of this and life goes on. ..."
So it will. ... And so will the 2006 season -- without Williams.
The mercurial halfback lost his appeal of a fourth violation of the NFL substance-abuse policy, attorney David Cornwell first announced on NFL Network's "Total Access" Tuesday evening.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello confirmed the news, meaning Williams will miss the entire 2006 season -- including the playoffs. He can apply for reinstatement after that.
"This is a league decision, and we are disappointed in what it means for Ricky and the team," Dolphins head coach Nick Saban said in a statement.
Cornwell, a former league counsel who helped craft the NFL's substance abuse guidelines, urged the players' union and ownership to "review the issues we raised on the appeal. ... And restore the original intention of the NFL's policy to put equal focus on helping NFL players as is put on testing and suspending them."
Williams was informed of the decision by the league office earlier today. He had appealed the violation, which occurred in late December, to the league on April 10. Cornwell had expressed hope after the appeal that the league would rule in Williams' favor.
"I'm disappointed with the decision but I respect it," Williams said in a statement released by the Dolphins. "I'm proud of my association with the National Football League and look forward to returning to the Dolphins in 2007."
According to Miami Herald beat writer Jason Cole, that hope is based on the fact that Williams did not test positive for marijuana, the substance he had tested positive for on three previous occasions.
The substance he tested positive for is unknown, but agent Leigh Steinberg has hinted that it was an "upper" and a drug not in keeping with Williams' personality.
Williams had been participating in the off-season training program at the Dolphins' complex and was there working out shortly before the league announced its decision.
The 1998 Heisman Trophy winner at Texas and 2002 NFL rushing champion, Williams retired and sat out the 2004 season, then returned last year to play for Saban.
Williams served a four-game suspension at the start of the 2005 season for his third violation of the drug program, then ran for 743 yards and averaged 4.4 yards a carry while sharing playing time with rookie Ronnie Brown.
News that Williams had failed another drug test surfaced in February, while he was in India studying yoga and holistic medicine.
As Associated Press sports writer Steven Wine noted tonight, Saban repeatedly has praised Williams' conduct and performance last season and supported him in the appeal process.
"This is a league decision, and we are disappointed in what it means for Ricky and the team," Saban's statement said. "Ricky did an outstanding job for the Dolphins, not only as a player but also what he added as a person to the team's chemistry and to our overall success."
The suspension represents a financial blow for Williams, who owes the Dolphins $8.6 million for breaching his contract when he retired in 2004. His return last season was motivated partly by the need for a paycheck, and that may be a motivation for him to return in 2007.
"Ricky is obviously disappointed," said Steinberg. "He'll need to work hard to get back to the league in 2007."
Of course, it's possible the suspension could mean the end of his career.
If he does try to return next year, he'll be 30 years old and will have played a total of 12 games in the previous three seasons. ...
Meanwhile, the Dolphins will head into the 2006 season with Brown firmly entrenched as their primary backfield weapon. There are those who still question whether Brown, who shared carries with Carnell "Cadillac" Williams throughout his collegiate career at Auburn (and then with Ricky Williams last season), is capable of touching the ball 300-plus times.
His college coach, Tommy Tuberville, isn't among them.
"I heard somebody on TV say they're concerned about him running the ball 25 to 30 times a game," Tuberville said last May. "This guy? He could carry it 40 to 45."
While that might be a bit of a reach, recently re-signed backups Sammy Morris and Travis Minor don't seem likely to provide the kind of productivity that Williams did in 2005.
There are veteran free agent running backs available -- former first-round draft picks Anthony Thomas and Antowain Smith come immediately to mind -- and Cole told ESPNews tonight that Miami will consider all available talent before adding more depth either via free agency of this weekend's draft.
But no matter how the team proceeds and who they add to the roster, one thing appears certain: Fantasy owners will get a chance to find out what Brown can do for them come September.