Ricky Williams Rumors: Stay with Miami Dolphins or Join New England Patriots?

At 34 years old, Ricky Williams isn't commanding much of a market.

The shelf life of running backs is short, but Williams has managed to play for 11 years. Even so, the former Dolphin ran for 673 yards last year.

According to the Miami Herald, Williams doesn't expect to stay in Miami much longer. It looks like Miami isn't going to try too hard to retain him.

The Dolphins drafted bruising back Daniel Thomas in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft and also acquired Reggie Bush to complement him.

Though Miami likely won't keep Ricky Williams, it seems as if another team is thinking about acquiring him. That team would be the New England Patriots, who had a league-leading 14 regular-season wins.

The Patriots acquired Shane Vereen in the second round of the draft and Stevan Ridley in the third round.

The Patriots have a loaded backfield with Danny Woodhead and the draft picks, but the New England Patriots don't have any other real threat at RB if they decide not to bring back BenJarvus Green-Ellis.

Even if New England does bring back Green-Ellis, they could still take a chance on a solid veteran like Ricky Williams.

The Boston Herald claims that Bill Belichick's has a history of taking veteran players and could take a flyer on Williams.

Though it would be smart for the Dolphins to retain Williams, expect the Patriots to take a low-risk chance on the aging veteran.