Ricky Williams has never been shy when it comes to publicizing his cannabis usage during his 11-year career in the NFL. Now, the 45-year-old is sharing the ways others around the league utilized the substance to handle the bumps and bruises of the sport.
Williams – who played for the Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints and Baltimore Ravens – ultimately saw his career come to an abrupt end in 2011 after he was suspended for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy on several occasions. While the former star running back is arguably the most infamous example of marijuana use in the league, he argues many players consumed the drug under wraps.
“I played a long time ago, and I played for a long time. So things have changed a lot when I first got into the league,” Williams said on USA Today’s “Sports Seriously.”
“My rookie year, a Hall of Fame player on the team, he’s in the Hall of Fame now, invited me over to his house and he gave me the speech about how to take care of yourself in the NFL. And he pulled out some cannabis, crushed it up, split a blunt, opened it up, put the cannabis in there, took a Vicodin, crushed it up, sprinkled the Vico in there, rolled up the blunt and passed it to me. That was a vet, teaching me as a rookie, how to take care of myself in the NFL.”
Williams who was placed under the spotlight upon immediately entering the NFL in 1999 after the Saints traded multiple picks to select him at No. 5, sighted another story where his teammates were read you have a special type of snack during a film session.
“My last year in the NFL, I was playing for the Ravens,” Williams said. “And one point we were in the playoffs and I was leaving the facility and there were guys coming in with a plate full of ‘brownies.'” They [were] going to go watch film, so yeah…”
Williams recognized that a lot has changed since his playing days in the league, specifically the greater acceptance of cannabis both in the legal and football realms. According to him, it’ll only be a matter of time before marijuana will become a commonality in NFL locker rooms.
“And now, because it’s more legal, it’s to the point, why wouldn’t you [use it] if you’re in the NFL?” Williams asked. “I think in the future, teams are gonna be supplying cannabis for the players because they’ve realized it’s a healthy alternative [to] pharmacy.”
As for Williams, the outspoken running back has now entered the marijuana industry himself as a proud owner of the cannabis brand ‘Highsman.’
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