Chasing Ricky - A Thread: Journalist Recounts His 2004 Search For Ricky Williams After He Popped For Weed & Disappeared Into The Tropics

Scrolling around this Friday evening I stumbled across a Twitter thread from journalist Chris Jones about former running back Ricky Williams & enjoyed it so much I wanted to share. First, some quick background..

As most know, Williams is a wildly talented athlete & U of Texas alum who won the Heisman Trophy in '98, went to the Saints as a 1st round pick in '99, and seemed set for a promising future in the NFL... before announcing his intent to retire less than 5 years later after multiple pops for marijuana use. At the time he was pegged as sort of a weirdo or misfit by the media, who likely didn't understand what was going on behind the scenes; a battle with extreme social anxiety disorder. 

"I was 23, a millionaire and had everything, yet I was never more unhappy in my life," Williams said. "I felt extremely isolated from my friends and family because I couldn't explain to them what I was feeling. I had no idea what was wrong with me."

So in 2004 he sort of just briefly... disappeared. This is where Jones' story begins...

And tossing in a couple other responses here I thought were good vibes:

After that journey, Williams came back to the Dolphins in 2005 and was on & off again with them until 2010, and retired from the NFL with the Ravens in 2012. These days he's busy with his own herbal wellness company. Sounds like a solid fit.