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League source says Ricky Williams failed marijuana test

From the Palm Beach Post-

Dolphins running back Ricky Williams tested positive for marijuana in April, and won’t be allowed to re-apply for reinstatement until September at the earliest, a league source confirmed this morning.

Williams, suspended a year ago, had applied for reinstatement just before the recent NFL Draft and had expressed confidence that he would be reinstated.

The latest failed drug test, which was first reported by ESPN.com, represents Williams’ fifth violation of the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. Once a player tests positive three times, he is subject to a suspension of at least one year for each subsequent violation. But since Williams tested positive while he was suspended, it is likely to be considered part of rehabilitation.

Both the Dolphins and the league, through spokesman Greg Aiello, had no comment. They cited the confidentiality of a player’s status in the NFL substance-abuse program.

A message left for Leigh Steinberg, Williams’ agent, was not immediately returned.

Williams, in an April 6 interview on a national ESPN radio program, said he hadn’t smoked marijuana in “maybe three years.” He was also optimistic that he would reinstated from his year-long suspension that started April 25, 2005.

If the league source is correct, this news has to mark the end of the Ricky Williams era in Miami and probably the end of the player’s NFL career. Sorry to say, I don’t think all that many people will miss Ricky Williams. I won’t be missing Williams one bit.

 
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