Could We See Ricky Williams This Year?

2007 has turned out to be a bad year for running backs.

Some, like Cadillac Williams, ended their season early because of injury. Others, like Steven Jackson, Shaun Alexander, and Rudi Johnson, have battled injuries all season.

Now you can add Ronnie Brown to the ever-growing list.

Brown injured his knee on Sunday during an interception return by New England, and had to leave the game early. Today, it was reported that he too will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. With Brown out, the Dolphins will rely on Jesse Chatman, Patrick Cobbs and Lorenzo Booker to shoulder the running duties.

Which brings up the question of whether or not we'll see Ricky Williams playing in Miami this season. He applied for reinstatement on Monday, October 1, but the NFL has up to 60 days before it has to make a decision. By then, Miami would have about five games left in their season.

It seems like a longshot, but with Ronnie Brown out, and the team in serious rebuilding mode(Chris Chambers has already been traded, and there's talk that Jason Taylor might be gone after this season) this would be the best time to get Ricky in for a few games to see what he has. At the very least, it could drum up some trade offers, and at best, the Dolphins might find they have a decent running back to back up Ronnie Brown next year to help keep his wear and tear to a minimum.

Of course all of that hinges on Ricky's ability to pass drug tests, which up to this point has been a problem.