Talking Ricky, DaunteNick Saban said Daunte Culpepper continues to recover well from knee surgery and that Ricky Williams has nothing to prove by playing in Canada.
BY JASON COLE
jcole@MiamiHerald.com
Dolphins coach Nick Saban said Friday that quarterback Daunte Culpepper's return from November knee surgery is progressing well and that he's laying out a plan for running back Ricky Williams' return in 2007.
While the Dolphins opened a three-day camp for 62 players, including rookies and a bevy of players not under contract, the most intriguing news was about Culpepper's recovery and Williams' road to recovering his career.
The road for Williams isn't likely to include an excursion to Toronto, as Saban downplayed the value of Williams playing a season for the Argonauts of the Canadian Football League while he serves a one-year suspension from the NFL.
''My thing is, we want Ricky back on our team,'' said Saban, who must give Williams permission to play for Toronto under the terms of Williams' contract. ``Ricky doesn't need to go to Canada to prove anything to us. He doesn't need to do any of that stuff.
``I think if he really wanted to do it, it's something that I'd certainly consider discussing with him and give him the opportunity to do it if it's something that he needed to do or really wanted to do. He doesn't need to do it for us.''
As for Culpepper, Saban said the quarterback recently went to Birmingham, Ala., to meet with renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrews, who repaired three ligaments in Culpepper's right knee in November.
''Dr. Andrews gave him an A-plus grade in terms of where he was in his rehab,'' Saban said. ``We're just going to continue to progress with him. We can make no predictions about when he'll be 100 percent, and we certainly won't put him in a situation that he can't continue to make progress.
``He has already participated in just about everything that we do in our offseason program. His straight-line running is fine. He's throwing the ball. He's dropping back. He runs the plays and does the handoffs. He wears a knee brace and he probably does it about three-quarter speed, but we're very pleased with his progress.''
The Dolphins appear to have growing confidence that Culpepper will be able to play around the start of the season. The team reportedly pulled a trade offer off the table to Detroit for quarterback Joey Harrington this week, preferring to wait until June, when the Lions will have to cut Harrington.
Asked if he had pulled the offer, Saban said: ``Well I would like to be able to negotiate whatever we decide to do with Detroit with Detroit. So I would rather not respond to that to put us in a situation that may not be most advantageous.''
But when asked if he was actually talking to the Lions at this point, Saban said, ''We talk.'' He then smiled and winked with light sarcasm.
As for Williams, Saban said he plans to lay out a program with the running back and agent Leigh Steinberg that will help Williams get reinstated to the NFL in 2007. Williams is currently in California teaching at an ashram.
''We're in the process of doing that,'' Saban said. ``We're trying to formulate a plan that is something that he wants to do, that he would enjoy doing, but also that would give him a great opportunity to further enhance his career when he comes back.
``He can work out in India or California or wherever he wants to go as long as we develop a plan and he has discipline to that, which has never been an issue with Ricky.
``Working out and doing what we ask him to do, that has never been an issue.''
That plan, for now, does not include finding the fastest way to trade Williams.
'If we just wanted to trade him, it would probably be a good thing for us to say, `Go up there and gain 2,000 yards and we'll get rid of you.' But that's not our philosophy on it,'' Saban said.
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Ricky/Daunte futures in Miami
Ricky/Daunte futures in Miami
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