Raiders and Russell at a Crossroads
by mikesd1981 on Dec 4, 2009 8:13 AM PST
17 comments
It would seem the Raiders and JaMarcus Russell are at a crossoads.
By Steve Corkran:
JaMarcus started 25 of 26 games before his demotion. Will he ever reclaim his status as the Raiders' unquestioned starting quarterback?
"There are a lot of things supposed to be a certain way in this world, but they're not," Cable said of Russell's slow development earlier this season. "Where he is, where he goes with it will, ultimately, be up to him. How good he wants to be (depends on) how much he's willing to, ultimately, put into it."
Interviews from several players and insiders that would like to remain anonymous have lead to the following conclusions:
- Managing general partner Al Davis will redouble his efforts to ensure Russell polishes his mechanics, improves his decision-making and works even harder than he did this past offseason, in preparation for reinstalling him as the unquestioned starter. Hence the promotion of Hackett to QB coach.
- Davis will sign a proven quarterback to guide the team until he feels Russell is ready to be the full-time starter. Will that work? Maybe. But again you can only take someone as far as they want to go.
- Davis will attempt to trade for a Pro Bowl-caliber quarterback so that the Raiders have a better chance of making the playoffs next season. In turn, Russell will get more time to work on his shortcomings.
So what these all pretty much lead up to is the fact we probably won't be seeing JaMarcus Russell leaving the Raiders anytime soon. But in just 3 short years he will be a free agent. There are a few other reasons. Some point to cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, safety Michael Huff and guard Robert Gallery struggling early in their NFL careers and finally taking off in their fourth seasons. Others point to the rebirth of Alex Smith and Vince Young. However, they all wanted to try harder to learn more and get better to get on the field.
We could cut Russell next year with a modest cap hit. He's due to make $9.45 million next season, $9.35 million in 2011 and $5.83 million in 2012. Gradkowski is making $535,000 this season and No. 3 quarterback Charlie Frye $620,000. Both players' contracts expire at season's end.
If the Raiders ask Russell to restructure, that could change everything.
0 recs |
17 comments
|
Email
Print
Comments
Resign Bruce
Release Frye, Draft a QB in the 3rd-4th Rd, or Sign a QB in the offseason. Let all three QBs’ compete for the job. With Bruce still #1 on the Depth chart. It will show if JaMarcus has changed or not and if Bruce can win the job with talent and devotion, not by default.
That would work
the problem is that I think Davis is going to start Russell again next year. But if that’s the case we need to put Russell back in now and lose the rest of the games.
Again, from this aricle:
Some quarterbacks would have responded to the benching by saying to themselves, “Self, this is embarrassing! These people apparently don’t like the way I’ve been playing. I’d better see what I can do to improve and get back onto the field.”
If that was Cable’s hope, he has been disappointed. Asked recently if he has seen a change in Russell since his demotion, Cable said, “I don’t really see any change whatsoever. He’s working, doing what he’s asked to do. He’s preparing like normal.”
“Like normal” is, by all accounts, not enough.
Win, Lose, or Tie, Raiders til I die!
If Al Starts JaMarcus
Look foward to another dissapointing season. I cant see any reason why Al would start JaMarcus next year unless he shows a huge, and I mean HUGE improvment from this year. His throws were so bad, It looked like to me he was throwing the game. The worst was watching him just walk to the bench, throw on his wool cap and just not give a husky fuck. He couldnt give two shits if they win or not. Keep Bruce, he cares, he has pride.
I hate when whoever blockquotes the whole
article here does it. Because while I copied some of the stuff, I added some of my own take. So it’s not a direct quote.
Win, Lose, or Tie, Raiders til I die!
Edit
if you’re going to do that, then just go copy and paste the article. It’s more of an excerpt than a direct quote. I linked the article on top for a reference.
Win, Lose, or Tie, Raiders til I die!
so, pro bowl QB's are widely available for trade?
well, uhh, here are a few…
Derek Anderson
Matt Hasselbeck
Mike Vick
and I suppose one could make an argument for
Donovan McNabb
by birds'n'raiders on Dec 4, 2009 12:54 PM PST reply actions
Grad and Frye should stay
they know the system and are, at least Grad (b/c I haven’t watched Frye play) better at their position than several others at theirs – filling the bona fide weaknesses should be our focus rather than constantly dwelling on QBs. There remains this assumption that bringing in a Brees or Manning would result instantly in victories. They wouldn’t be much better than Grad under present circumstances.
Son-of-Blanda
by Sons-of-Blanda on Dec 4, 2009 1:22 PM PST up reply actions
LOL
thats what i was thinking when i read that. id like to see al davis offer the saints a first rounder for drew brees and see the saints laugh in al’s face.
you dont generally acquire a great qb by trade
Punjabi by Nature
and some others...
Kerry Collins
Marc Bulger
Jake Delhomme
It doesn't matter who is back there
The system we have in place connot succede. we need an intelligent GM
"May the wind be at our back, here comes the Silver and Black "
i feel bad for the raiders nowadays
they used to be the shit like the baddest of the baddest way back in the 70’s they were vicious and played like football was supposed to be played, but Al is just makin this team a joke you guys should start buying more billboards get his head out of his ass, but we can’t argue that he doesn’t fight for his team cuz thats all he did in their heyday
"You only get intercepted when you don't know what your doing, I knew what I was Doing".
Johnny Unitas
---WAITING FOR MY JACK "THE ASSASSIN" TATUM JERSEY!!!!!!!---
by 805 on Dec 5, 2009 12:52 PM PST reply actions
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
Related FanPosts on Silver And Black Pride
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
