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By Alex Marvez
Staff Writer
Posted June 7 2005
[font=Verdana,Arial, Helvetica]Now that he is the Dolphins' general manager, Randy Mueller may soon be reunited with a player whose services he doesn't want.
Mueller didn't give Ricky Williams a strong endorsement when asked about the tailback's expected return in a May 23 interview on Sirius Satellite Radio. Coach Nick Saban, who hired Mueller as general manager Monday, has courted Williams to come out of retirement and rejoin the Dolphins in late July.
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"I would not want him on my team," said Mueller, who traded Williams to the Dolphins when he was New Orleans' general manager in 2002. "I kind of crossed that bridge a couple years back. But at the same time I understand the enticing thing for Nick. He wants to acquire good players. He's a proven recruiter. He knows what it is to go get guys and talk them into coming, and I think some of that recruiting has gone on. Ricky wants to be loved, so that's been music to his ears."
Mueller's employment isn't expected to affect whether Williams chooses to resume playing, as Saban is believed to have final say on all football decisions. Mueller was not available for comment Monday.
Williams was on New Orleans' roster when Mueller was hired as Saints general manager in 2000. Williams' off-field behavior and problems with management, especially coach Jim Haslett, prompted Mueller to choose tailback Deuce McAllister in the first round of the 2001 draft. The move was made even though New Orleans had surrendered eight picks two years earlier for the chance to draft Williams.
"He was not a problem in the locker room," Mueller said in the radio interview. "He worked hard. He practiced hard. When he was around there, he was fine. It was just the off-field stuff that drove us crazy, and it started to bleed into a little bit of the offseason program.
"Ricky would admit this: He's out there. He's different. If you know [Haslett,] that was not going to be a marriage that lasted long."
Mueller said he believed Saban may be thinking of trading Williams if he can help rehabilitate the tailback's image following three failed drug tests and his walking out on the Dolphins just before the start of last season.
Mueller said he thinks there would be "some [trade] value a year from now" if Williams regains the weight he lost while out of football and rushed for "600 or 700 yards" while splitting time with tailback Ronnie Brown, who was the Dolphins' first-round selection in April's draft.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/sfl-dolside07jun07,0,6575515.story?coll=sfla-sports-front
Staff Writer
Posted June 7 2005
[font=Verdana,Arial, Helvetica]Now that he is the Dolphins' general manager, Randy Mueller may soon be reunited with a player whose services he doesn't want.
Mueller didn't give Ricky Williams a strong endorsement when asked about the tailback's expected return in a May 23 interview on Sirius Satellite Radio. Coach Nick Saban, who hired Mueller as general manager Monday, has courted Williams to come out of retirement and rejoin the Dolphins in late July.
[/font]
"I would not want him on my team," said Mueller, who traded Williams to the Dolphins when he was New Orleans' general manager in 2002. "I kind of crossed that bridge a couple years back. But at the same time I understand the enticing thing for Nick. He wants to acquire good players. He's a proven recruiter. He knows what it is to go get guys and talk them into coming, and I think some of that recruiting has gone on. Ricky wants to be loved, so that's been music to his ears."
Mueller's employment isn't expected to affect whether Williams chooses to resume playing, as Saban is believed to have final say on all football decisions. Mueller was not available for comment Monday.
Williams was on New Orleans' roster when Mueller was hired as Saints general manager in 2000. Williams' off-field behavior and problems with management, especially coach Jim Haslett, prompted Mueller to choose tailback Deuce McAllister in the first round of the 2001 draft. The move was made even though New Orleans had surrendered eight picks two years earlier for the chance to draft Williams.
"He was not a problem in the locker room," Mueller said in the radio interview. "He worked hard. He practiced hard. When he was around there, he was fine. It was just the off-field stuff that drove us crazy, and it started to bleed into a little bit of the offseason program.
"Ricky would admit this: He's out there. He's different. If you know [Haslett,] that was not going to be a marriage that lasted long."
Mueller said he believed Saban may be thinking of trading Williams if he can help rehabilitate the tailback's image following three failed drug tests and his walking out on the Dolphins just before the start of last season.
Mueller said he thinks there would be "some [trade] value a year from now" if Williams regains the weight he lost while out of football and rushed for "600 or 700 yards" while splitting time with tailback Ronnie Brown, who was the Dolphins' first-round selection in April's draft.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/sfl-dolside07jun07,0,6575515.story?coll=sfla-sports-front