With Super Bowl 53 weeks away, it’s only right that two of the leagues biggest disrupters announce some big news.
Former N.F.L. greats, Ricky Williams and others have joined forces to launch the Freedom Football League.
Williams spoke with ESPN’s Outside the Lines about his decision to launch the league.
“The purpose of this league … is about community and the development of players“… In thinking about creating this league, I wanted to create a league that I could have stayed in and been comfortable and really thrived.”
The FFL said in a press release that they would also support players who wanted to “address society’s challenges relating to social justice, wealth disparity, health and wellness and more hot-button issues they are passionate about.”
Players would also have “permanent and reliable holistic health and wellness support on and off the field.”
Williams joins Terrell Owens, Simeon Rice, Jeff Garcia, Dexter Jackson and Byron Chamberlin as investors in the new league.
Williams made waves early in his career when he left the league in 2004 while at the height of his career over the N.F.L.’s substance abuse policy. A long-time proponent for players to have access to alternative medicines such as cannabis, Williams returned to the league. He returned to the league in 2005.
He officially retired in 2010.