Las Vegas Raiders: JaMarcus Russell, QB
With the first pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, the Las Vegas Raiders (who were in Oakland at the time) brought in LSU quarterback Ja’Marcus Russell. The strong-armed gun-slinger had a ton of admirers, and it was easy to see why.
He was everything teams wanted in a quarterback when it came to size and arm strength — and he just went off in the Sugar Bowl in his final game. However, there were concerns about his focus and even the Raiders had some inner turmoil.
Lane Kiffin apparently didn’t want to make Russell the pick but owner Al Davis overrode the coach and added Russell. A holdout ensued and Russell missed all of the preseason and Week 1 trying to get his deal worked out.
Once he was signed, he had to fight for a starting spot and didn’t get that until 2008. He was less than impressive but still, his numbers weren’t terrible. But all that changed in 2009 when he threw 11 picks and just three touchdowns in nine games.
Later on, we all learned more about why Russell declined so quickly. Former NFL guard David Diehl told a story to New York Sports Media Columnist Andrew Marchand about how the coaches proved Russell wasn’t actually watching game film.
"“David Diehl just told a great story on the FAN. Coaches didn’t think Jamarcus Russell *was studying tapes so they gave him blank cassettes. Next day, he said he watched the blitz packages. The tapes were blank.” — Marchand via Twitter"
Russell is proof of why interviews are so important before the draft. Players with elite talent can get by on that alone in the NCAA but in the pros, they have to do much more. And Russell wasn’t up for that task.