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Ricky Williams calls out Tony Sparano
By Tim Graham
ESPN.com
Dolphins running back Ricky Williams told a local radio station Monday that he believes it's time for him to leave Miami.
In a long interview with Miami sports radio station WQAM, Williams criticized head coach Tony Sparano, expressed disgust with the team's performance in Sunday's 38-7 loss to New England and said his well-documented wanderlust has kicked in.
"I can't lie," Williams said. "It's been floating around. I've been a Miami Dolphin off and on for eight years now. I was thinking about ... when I got drafted. Looking back, it's almost like there's different phases of my life. It's like when you graduate from one phase, it's an internal school of life. A lot of times when you graduate from one lesson to another lesson, you actually change locations.
"This has been a long lesson. I flunked a couple times. It seems like now it's time to move on."
Williams' contract with Miami is up. In the spring, he'll turn 34, old for a running back. However, Williams remained somewhat productive in Miami's moribund offense, rushing for 673 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 4.2 yards a carry.
Williams expressed distaste for Sparano's micromanaging style and said Sparano was more overbearing than the notoriously fussy Nick Saban.
"A team takes on the personality of the head coach," Williams said. "I think the way we're coached, Tony goes through a lot of effort to show us the things that it takes to win football games: not turning the ball over, converting third downs, scoring in the red zone. He spent a lot of time saying 'If you do these things you win.' Sometimes, I feel like he does it a little bit too much.
"My personal opinion is if you have the right attitude that 'You guys are going to win,' then all that other stuff takes care of itself."
Sparano's job status remained in question Monday. Dolphins owner Stephen Ross met with Sparano and general manager Jeff Ireland after a second straight 7-9 season. The Dolphins went 1-7 at home.
"My thing that I've been thinking about for me and my future," Williams said, "is really focusing on what it is that I want to accomplish and what it is I want to achieve in working there, but not micromanaging this or that or focusing on the little things. It's keeping my eye on the prize and putting myself in a supportive environment and going to work every day with a smile on my face."
By Tim Graham
ESPN.com
Dolphins running back Ricky Williams told a local radio station Monday that he believes it's time for him to leave Miami.
In a long interview with Miami sports radio station WQAM, Williams criticized head coach Tony Sparano, expressed disgust with the team's performance in Sunday's 38-7 loss to New England and said his well-documented wanderlust has kicked in.
"I can't lie," Williams said. "It's been floating around. I've been a Miami Dolphin off and on for eight years now. I was thinking about ... when I got drafted. Looking back, it's almost like there's different phases of my life. It's like when you graduate from one phase, it's an internal school of life. A lot of times when you graduate from one lesson to another lesson, you actually change locations.
"This has been a long lesson. I flunked a couple times. It seems like now it's time to move on."
Williams' contract with Miami is up. In the spring, he'll turn 34, old for a running back. However, Williams remained somewhat productive in Miami's moribund offense, rushing for 673 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 4.2 yards a carry.
Williams expressed distaste for Sparano's micromanaging style and said Sparano was more overbearing than the notoriously fussy Nick Saban.
"A team takes on the personality of the head coach," Williams said. "I think the way we're coached, Tony goes through a lot of effort to show us the things that it takes to win football games: not turning the ball over, converting third downs, scoring in the red zone. He spent a lot of time saying 'If you do these things you win.' Sometimes, I feel like he does it a little bit too much.
"My personal opinion is if you have the right attitude that 'You guys are going to win,' then all that other stuff takes care of itself."
Sparano's job status remained in question Monday. Dolphins owner Stephen Ross met with Sparano and general manager Jeff Ireland after a second straight 7-9 season. The Dolphins went 1-7 at home.
"My thing that I've been thinking about for me and my future," Williams said, "is really focusing on what it is that I want to accomplish and what it is I want to achieve in working there, but not micromanaging this or that or focusing on the little things. It's keeping my eye on the prize and putting myself in a supportive environment and going to work every day with a smile on my face."
