Updated 3:12 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Feb. 7

RB Ricky Williams called it a career on Tuesday. The back has played 11 professional seasons for the Saints, Dolphins and most recently the Ravens.

Williams rushed for more than 10,000 career yards and currently ranks 26th on the league's all-time rushing list. His best season came in 2002, when he ran for a league-high 1,853 yards and scored 17 touchdowns. That was Williams' only season he was named to the Pro Bowl.

Acquired by the Saints on Draft Day in 1999 — in the famous deal where then-New Orleans head coach Mike Ditka traded all his choices to move up and select the former Heisman Trophy winner — Williams spent three season there before being traded to the Dolphins. His career in Miami was up-and-down, as he showed great ability on the field but was often a distraction off it. He famously retired during training camp in 2004, missing that entire season. Williams also missed the entire 2006 season as a result of a drug suspension and most of 2007 because of a suspension and a serious shoulder injury.

"The NFL has been an amazing page in the chapter of my life," Williams said. "I pray that all successive adventures offer me the same potential growth, success and most importantly, fun. I want to thank all my fans, teammates, coaches and supporters for the strength they've given me to overcome so much."

The back revitalized his career recently as a complimentary back, first to Ronnie Brown in Miami and then to Ray Rice with the Ravens in 2011.  

Pro Football Talk, one of the outlets that initially reported Williams planned to retire, also noted that there is a "belief" that Williams' decison "won't stick."