JaMarcus Russell gets cut from the Oakland Raiders

Today capped off the drama between 2007's overall draft pick JaMarcus Russell and the Oakland Raiders. Although I am not a fan of the Oakland Raiders and I'm against them, I feel for the fans of this team. They've made a slew of poor choices when it comes to drafting players and when it comes to selecting coaches. But enough of being nice, let's make some fun!

For those of you who don't know about the story of JaMarcus Russell, he was highly favored in the 2007 NFL Draft. He was so highly favored in fact that he was selected by the Raiders as the #1 overall pick. Other #1 picks in the NFL draft include O.J. Simpson, Terry Bradshaw, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, John Elway, Bo Jackson, Peyton Manning, Michael Vick, and Eli Manning. Russell was in very good company. Of all the # 1 picks in the NFL draft, many are Super Bowl winners, many are Hall of Famers, and many are considered legends or legends in the making in the NFL. It's here that the story starts going south for both Russell and the Raiders.

As you know, the team with the worst record gets the first pick in the following NFL Draft. Many teams choose to trade that privilege to another team in exchange for players or money or both. The Raiders, as they usually do, took the highest pick and, dazzled by how highly rated Russell was, they chose him. They signed him to a huge contract, $68 million with $31.5 million guaranteed, after he held out for a huge payday. He missed the first few weeks of his first season in order to secure his enormous check. His work ethic became questioned after this. Was he in the NFL for the money or did he truly care about the game?

These questions were put to rest under constant media coverage of Russell's failure to show for practice, showing up to practice overweight, and his constant ineptitude in actual games. He threw interception after interception in games and was plagued with incompletions. His arrival at the 2010 Raiders' Training Camp signaled the end for Russell. His coach's eyes must have bugged out of his head when he saw Russell, usually 260 pounds, enter Training Camp at over 300 pounds. His lack of a work ethic does not end at his shocking weight gain. He was a constant slacker even off the field. His team mates say that he fell asleep during meetings.

The pick of Russell shows either the Raiders are cursed or that they just make dumb picks or maybe it shows both. Al Davis, the old ass owner of the Raiders, always exerts his influence to make a terrible choice. The quarterback plays a crucial role on the football field. He is the general, the leader, and the example for all players to follow. He's supposed to be the first one to practice and the last one to leave. JaMarcus Russell was the worst possible QB, general, and leader for the Raiders. They did better under their backup QB than they did under their starter. In my opinion they should have booted Russell sooner.

Will anybody pick up Russell after his release from the Raiders earlier today? I don't think so. Michael Vick, a great QB who was coming back into the league after his involvement in a dog fighting enterprise, wasn't picked up immediately by the Eagles. Instead, many many teams considered picking up Vick and ultimately passed because of his terrible past. Russell is probably marred even worse than Vick by his lack of work ethic and his inability to perform. My guess is that he's on the fast train out of town never to be heard from again.