It seems like the only time that we hear about our Raiders through the (East Coast) Main Stream Media, they are harping on JaMarcus Russell's weight, all night partying, inaccuracy, late throws, studiousness (Or Lack thereof), Bling Bling and his taste for mink coats.
In fact, in the eyes of the "Football Nation" outside of Oakland, and even some within our own ranks, JaMarcus is an Akili Smith/Ryan Leaf type bust. He received all of the money and has delivered a sub-Mantle of the Earth's performance on the field, in the classroom and in the locker room.
AND, they have a point...To an extent.
Russell's belly does seem to hang over his pants. He has been known to be out quite late in the Bay Area (And Elsewhere) party scene. His throws have been, at times, the least accurate I have ever seen from a "Starter" in the NFL. According to his Coach, Tom Cable, his study habits have been sub-par, until recently. Wearing his "Bling" on the field drives the entire Nation crazy when he can't complete a pass, yet, flaunts his wealth weekly.And, yes Nation, those mink coats need to be saved for a cold December Day when the team has a 10-2 record and is storming out of the East Coast/Midwest with a win.
Man...Have the (East Coast) Main Stream Media EVER had a bigger target than JaMarcus Russell to spew their Raider/Al Davis Hatred at?
Have you heard about him having three offensive coordinators in three years? Or, how about him being the youngest starting QB in the NFL before this year? How about the fact that he has two rookies and a Tight End in "Bracket Coverage" as targets. How about the loss of an O-Line? And how about the lack of an Offensive Coordinator this season? Or, how about his Head Coach, Offensive play caller and O-Line Coach being the same person. Not to mention that the only time in his life that his head coach had been a Head Coach and offensive coordinator his "College" Team had a sub .300 winning percentage?
Does any of that scream out, "Young QB put in a position to succeed"?
Now, they all want to talk about Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan. And they want to espouse until their hearts are content that JaMarcus is a bust and that Flacco and Ryan (Both older than JaMarcus) are the best young quarterbacks to come out in 10 years.
Unfortunately for us, and for JaMarcus we don't have the O-Line that Atlanta and Baltimore have. We don't have the receivers that they have and we don't have the young QB friendly system that they have. Nope, JaMarcus is expected to work from the shotgun on 80% of his plays, avoid the rush and find an open receiver who is running the wrong route, or at the very least, is running the right route and has not developed a chemistry with him yet.
What do you think Nation? Is he J-Russ or J-Bust?