San Francisco — Just when the Miami Dolphins thought they were done talking about Ricky Williams, news of the wayward running back's imminent return to the NFL put him back in his former teammates' thoughts this week.
And not all of them were happy to be thinking and talking about whether Ricky will run for the Dolphins again.
Even during a week away from South Florida, the Dolphins couldn't get away from the specter of Williams, who stunned the team with his abrupt retirement before training camp. His departure precipitated Miami's freefall into its first losing season in 16 years, leading to coach Dave Wannstedt's resignation two weeks ago.
Defensive end Jason Taylor was among Williams' harshest critics when the running back walked away. When asked how Williams might be welcomed back to Miami, Taylor essentially bit his tongue.
"I don't know. Everybody is different," Taylor said. "Everybody has different opinions of the situation. If it happens, then we'll deal with it then, but everyone's reaction is going to be different."
While the Dolphins (1-9) were holed up in a San Francisco hotel this week preparing for Sunday's game against the 49ers, Williams was taking holistic medicine classes at a school about 180 miles northeast of the Bay Area -- and his lawyer was working out a deal to get Williams back in the league.
According to his lawyer, Williams hopes to move from the retired list to the suspended list Dec. 5, when he'll serve his four-game suspension.
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