Time for Raiders to Cut Their Losses, and JaMarcus Russell

When the Oakland Raiders drafted quarterback JaMarcus Russell No. 1 overall in the 2007 draft, there were a lot of people questioning the pick. Mike Mayock, specifically, questioned whether or not Russell loved the game as much as he needed to in order to make this pick work for Oakland.

Mayock caught a lot of heat from the Raiders and from Russell’s camp, but it appears as though Mayock was in Russell’s head better than the Raiders — or even Russell himself.

Russell has shown in his three years in the NFL that not only is he an average talent to begin with, but he doesn’t have the drive or desire to be a winner. There are multiple reports that Russell is always the last person to show up for workouts and is always the first won out the door.

If he were a kicker, that wouldn’t be a big deal. However, he’s the team’s quarterback and, for better or worse, the face of the Raiders franchise. The team takes on the mentality and the personality of their quarterback and, as we’ve seen, it hasn’t exactly led to success for the silver and black.

Were it up to anyone other than Al Davis, Russell probably would have been cut last offseason. Tom Cable clearly did not want Russell as his quarterback and it took a historically bad showing before Davis allowed him to bench Russell in favor of Bruce Gradkowski.

And to the surprise of no one, the Raiders finally started winning games.

Now with the trade for Jason Campbell from the Redskins, the time is now to bench Russell and see what a guy like Campbell can do with an otherwise talented team.

Campbell has been taken advantage of in Washington, but he really is a good quarterback and, with some continuity around him, could even be pushed into being a very good quarterback. Not only that, but as far as being a leader and a good guy, Campbell embodies what teams should look for.

Even when the team traded for Donovan McNabb, he didn’t come out to the public to whine and complain about how he’s been slighted by the Redskins and that he’s demanding a trade. Instead, he kept his mouth shut, let them know he would like an opportunity to start elsewhere, and they have now given him the opportunity.

The Raiders made a good move trading for Campbell and, combined with what appears to be a very good draft, he could turn them into Wild Card contenders.

They’re not going to compete with the San Diego Chargers for the division, but sneaking in as a Wild Card team definitely isn’t out the question. Campbell will make the running game better, the running game will make Campbell better, and Oakland could finally see the talent they have at wide receiver.

Keeping Russell in the lineup doesn’t only hurt the team as a whole, but it hurts the players around him as individuals.

The team is sick of Russell and is ready to see him gone so they can finally start winning some games, so someone is going to have to talk Davis out of his man-crush on Russell’s strong arm and let Cable start Campbell. Or at least have a competition for the job during the offseason — no one is doubting that Campbell wins that in the first three practices.