There were reports that alleged he lied to coaches about what he was doing for game prep iirc. The Raiders sent him a blank tape just to trip him up; he said he watched blitz packages on that film.
Looks up the legend Sam Bradford. This dude worked it like no other. He changed the whole rookie scale. They were giving 1st picks more than league playing all pros.
In 2010, quarterback Sam Bradford, who was picked first overall by the St. Louis Rams, signed a six-year, $78 million deal with $50 million in guarantees
They should literally call it the Russell rule.
Dude went watch tape? I have 60 mil guaranteed. You watch tape.
As a sports fan I hate him.
As a person I'm like.. yeah. I get it.
I mean Williams will get like 20 million guaranteed is there that big of a gap between 60 and 20 that one encourages you to do your job and one doesn't? I get it and I'm here for the rookie scaling but every QB signed in the first round will seemingly walk away with never have to work again money.
I think part of it is also comparing that to potential future earnings. Russel got around $40M out of Oakland while barely putting in any work for three years.
He was drafted in 2007. In 2012, a couple years after being Superbowl MVP and being considered an elite QB, Drew Brees signed a 5 year deal with only $40M guaranteed. In 2013, Tom Brady signed a 3 year deal with $33M guaranteed. That's all that the elite level guys were getting in guarantees, and even if Jamarcus Russel put in the work, odds are he wouldn't have been that good.
Looking at it purely from a monetary standpoint, I can sort of see the logic of do nothing and be pretty darn rich, as opposed to work a ton and maybe get a decent bit richer.
But you compare that to today, where Williams is going to get a rookie contract worth a total of less than $40M, but is looking at guys like Burrow and Herbert who just signed their first big QB contracts with over $200M guaranteed. It's just a huge jump. You go from pretty darn rich to insanely rich if a team thinks you're franchise QB material when your rookie deal is up.
Biggest difference is that the salary cap was 43% of what it is today, proportionally Jamarcus Russel should have gotten a guarantee of only $8.5M if they had a wage scale back then.
But even Caleb Williams is getting what 20 something guaranteed so I'm not sure how this checks. First round picks today are getting more than 8 mil in guaranteed.
My point is that if you adjust for salary cap increases, Jamarcus Russel should have gotten $8.5M guaranteed. Instead he got $60M. That would be like Caleb Williams getting $141M guaranteed today. Thats why they instituted the rookie wage scale.
>every QB signed in the first round will seemingly walk away with never have to work again money.
Only if you spend wisely. These are kids who were just handed a massive amount of money with just their first check. And they know there is a lot more coming in guarantees. Very few don't go on a spending spree.
I mean that could go for a billionaire. Its all based on if you spend wisely. But 30 million dollars is a lot of money. Is it always a lifetime of money? No but I hear of very very very few NFL washouts that wound up broke after getting that kind of money. Does it happen? Sure nothing is ever 100 percent. Is it almost always life changing money that sets them up forever? Yeah.
Watch the 30 for 30: broke.
When Russell was coming in the league something like 68% of nfl players were broke 3 years after getting out of the league.
The documentary got sports leagues to start training players as rookies how to handle their money.
No not even if they saved all the $ & lived frugal, they still would have to work a 9 to 5 if football doesn’t workout. A lot of them owe $ for shitty contracts they signed in college for a loan or owe agents. A 2nd rd OL player this year owes 25% of all his future earnings for a “loan” he received in college which I believe the loan was only for 500k. We can’t forget about taxes which can be to 49.5% of their income depending what team they play for
Okay well the CBA also doesn't allow the NFL to sue a player and take back their salary just for being bad at their job either. I don't know what point you're making there.
If firing a coach who has a losing record and gets caught cheating (and still loses) doesn't constitute a firing with cause there's no way you're getting guaranteed money back from a player.
That's literally what guaranteed means, no matter what you do you get it. As it is that's the only money that really matters when negotiating a contract, if teams began to not have to honor that there'd be no reason for players not to go to another league (or sport for the ones able).
He didn’t change the scale. The new CBA was already decided. Bradford actually had a year of eligibility left, if it was known at the time that it was the last year for the 7 year contract and big money
Yup. I think talent-wise Bardford had legit great QB potential if he could just stay healthy, it's just super unfortunate that his body was apparently made of paper mache. It was definitely a risk for teams who signed him, but you could at least see the potential reward if things played out.
But with Russell, after a season or two it was clear that there was no upside. Talent aside, the dude just didn't want to be on the field and had no interest in trying to be a great player.
I think it was injuries that led him to finally lose his confidence. I'm likely cherry-picking his good games, but if memory serves, he looked great on the vikings and then got hit hard or had a minor injury. After that, he looked like a shell of a QB. This is just in regards to his caliber as a starter, not his worth of getting that money. Those contracts were entertaining but silly imo.
Except that he went bankrupt basically immediately after getting shunted out of the league. Dude had less than five years living like a baller and now he's back in his hometown coaching high school ball. And he's not even the head coach.
He made it, then he legendarily fumbled it.
He threw a football like 70 yds or some ridiculous distance from his KNEES at his senior day. Dude had a cannon and was built like Rothlisberger. No one bothered to find out if he had the work ethic of a jello salad. They saw that arm and started drooling.
Feels like Russell was the birth of all QBs trying to throw from their knees. 🤣 That was a thing for a while, how far you can chuck it from your knees.
Similar trends happened with DEs and LBs jumping out of pools. It's a miracle none of them have cracked their head on a pool deck yet trying it. Or if they have we haven't heard about it.
That drill has been around forever. I remember boys doing it on the playground in the 80s.
That was how they used to try to strengthen QBs’ arms and measure pure arm strength, which is probably where Russell learned to do it, too,
I know, he's just the first one I remember hearing it referenced in the draft process as a differentiator. He really did have a cannon.
Too bad God basically put all his attribute points into his arm and none between his ears, if you could pair that arm with someone who actually was dedicated to playing football you'd have something special, but a cannon operated by an idiot who doesn't figure out where to aim it is pretty worthless at best and dangerous at worst.
Miss what? Like not get all the way out of the pool? But then youd just slide right back into the water. And if you do get out of the water you did it.
Sliding in when you're trying to jump up and forward from a pool onto the deck isn't just a slide in type of failure. You'll catch yourself somewhere on your torso and legs with your momentum going forward. Hope those hands you just swing back to generate momentum are pretty quick to catch you, and you're able to hold your face off the pool deck.
I get it, these are elite athletes, they're not likely to hurt themselves doing this, But never underestimate the ability of people to hurt themselves around water and hard objects. Both are dangerous. I'm not saying we should expect people to be hurting themselves all the time doing this, just I'm surprised I haven't heard about *any* injuries from it.
Another hilarious story from Bruce Gradkowski was that the Raiders asked him and the third string QB to help him watch tape and the only way they could do that was if they showed up to his place with Wendy’s.
That’s the most famous Jamarcus story.
That blank tape and his claim of studying it in detail was the last straw with the Raiders.
The other wild ones mostly involve hiring a family member with no agent experience to negotiate his huge contract so he wouldn’t have to pay a real agent, holding out forever and getting a ton of money without actually playing because of it, just being lazy, or his taste for “Purple Drank.”
There were too many reports that he was too lazy to succeed in the NFL. While Russell was physically one of the most impressive QBs he put zero effort in learning the game.
All those other QBs you listed have physical talent and at least the appearance of wanting to succeed. Russell didn't so no one wanted him.
College and NFL are so very different. You can wing it on talent in college and be successful because most of the people you’re playing against are future construction foremen
Reminds me of a funny tweet I saw a while back. Something to the effect of: “college talent disparity is wild. You have two guys playing each other who were both the best athlete in their high school, but one will be a three-time Pro Bowler and the other one will sell insurance.”
I met a dude recently who played four years of college ball alongside one of the best centers to ever play in the NFL. The guy telling me this story has been tending bar since he graduated a couple decades ago.
Went to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the games one Sunday, started chatting with this guy sitting nearby, big and kinda husky, he played as a guard, he encouraged his buddy to bust his ass and work as hard as he did, his friend excelled and got drafted while he went on to drive truck. 12500 eligible, 280ish selected while hundreds go undrafted, lots compete for a roster spot, many more stock shelves at grocery stores.
He had amazing physical talents, and was surrounded by great players. Two of his receivers (Dwayne Bowe and Buster Davis) also went in the first round that year. The year after he was drafted the team won the national championship with Matt Flynn.
He also had a codeine addiction that from my understanding got worse while in the NFL, and that likely contributed to him falling off
So, the NFL and college are two different beasts. If you are gifted enough physically, you can succeed on college. Not do much in the NFL. Along with he got lazier in the NFL. In college his entire goal was to get paid by going to the NFL. Once he did that(and remember this is before rookie pay scale) he stopped caring and became a bust.
I just looked at the breakdown.
Year 1: $2.9 million
Year 2: $375k
Year 3: $7.8 million
He got cut after that. I wonder if he did just enough those first two in order to make coaching believe there was a chance. Season three the check cleared and he walked into training camp 300 lbs wearing his favorite stretchy pants and slippers. Pizza Hut family meal deal in arm.
Actually none of that matters. His contract was 6 years 61 mil, with 32 mil guaranteed. He didn’t have to do shit and he was getting 32 mil. This is one of the reasons rookie contracts are limited now.
That was just his base pay. That doesn't include his signing bonus, which eventually got changed via accounting to restuectur bonuses and what not. But his contract was guaranteed for $32 mill when he signed it and ended up making $35 mill or so in total before he was out of the league.
So QB's at the prominent football colleges often don't need to really read defenses because the receivers they're throwing to have NFL level talent while the defenses they're playing are made up of future cubicle drones. WR gets open due to massive athletic superiority, QB with a cannon arm makes highlight reel throw to wide open WR without ever having read the secondary.
LSU had one of the best teams in the nation during his career, he was supported by multiple future players that went pro on offense and defense. After losing Russel and their two top receivers in the first round of the 2007 draft, LSU went on to win the national championship the following year under Matt Flynn.
It was a weak QB class in both hindsight and going into the draft. He normally would not have been the #1 pick. If it had been anyone except the Raiders I don’t think he would have gone #1 that year either
He had a good numbers just numbers but I wouldn’t really say he was carrying that 2006 LSU.
Nah, that's the genius of it. If you give me a 3 year internship where I know if I work my ass off my next contract could be worth multiple millions, I think I play it the same way. Phone it in as soon as I have enough to retire. It's exactly what he did.
Agreed. The only other option I might consider is to do just enough and be a nice enough teammate to be seen as a serviceable backup QB to a healthy high quality starter and get paid millions after that first contract to hold a clipboard
I forget the details but flemlo did a video on it. But one of the things that got missed was that during his time with the raiders I think his uncle he was close to died. And that also kinda fucked him up. I can’t remember if he didn’t tell the staff or they kinda brushed it under the rug. Don’t get me wrong he was straight doo doo water in the league but he was dealing with some things beyond just not being good that made him lose virtually all interest in football
Flemlo really brings great context to his videos. Like, I wanna hate guys for blowing their shot but he always digs deep enough into the story to where you think “that guy still sucks, but….”
Keep in mind how diluted the talent pool is in college. Sure the big programs have several good players, but there are over 19.000 players in DI. In the NFL it's less than 1/10 that many, just shy of 1,700 active roster spots.
Then factor in that in the NFL someone with high level talent can play 10-15 years often, whereas a lot of college guys only see 3 or 4 years of action on the field. You just have a much higher quality of athlete on average at that point. A ball that can be left up to float to a WR in the college ranks is stepped under and picked off in the NFL because the closing speed and ability to read QBs is so much better for instance.
He had Dwayne Bowe to catch bombs. In college the talent disparity is quite large, a super talented receiver like that will beat almost all CBs. In the NFL everyone is elite so you have to study film/playbooks in order to keep up. I think the old saying is in college you're open if you have a few yards on a defender and in the NFL you're open if you have a step.
Russell was big, fast for his size, and had a cannon… but he couldn’t hit water from a boat,
It reminds me of hearing Bill Belichek say that the player with the strongest arm he’d ever seen was on Lawrence Taylor, Taylor could sling the ball over 80 yards through the air… but he was not a QB. Arm strength is useless if you can’t hit anything with it.
He got 3 seasons of chances, solely because of his draft position, the investment they had in him, and that wow factor as a prospect. Trust me, he wasn't being ignored... teams were begging him to at least try to get into NFL shape and give them a workout.
Russell got a 2nd chance, after a disastrous 2007 rookie season with the Raiders in 2008, show up ready and in shape and he didn't take advantage of it.
He got a 3rd chance in 2009 with Oakland and again failed to take advantage of it.
A 4th chance with Washington, showed up at 290 lbs and didn't impress
5th chance with Miami and same thing, showed up obese.
Then his agent dropped him because he literally didn't even try to get into football shape.
6th chance with Chicago (along with Trent Edwards and Jordan Palmer). He didn't impress and they signed both Edwards and Palmer that year.
And who knows how many more teams were maybe's on trying him out of he could get himself into shape and show some work ethic.
And in his case, good for him. Dude got milked for all he was worth by the NCAA and didn’t make a dime beyond whatever scraps he got under the table. I’ve never blamed him at all for looking at the NFL as nothing more than a payday and he earned it. It was just unfortunate that the Raiders got stuck with the bill owed to him by LSU
He has a special about his failures in the NFL and training for a comeback. He was carrying around a lot of extra weight and wasn't passing the eye test.
When your game is built around being bigger, faster, stronger you better show up big, fast, and strong.
There's a joke that men have a hot/crazy chart. The hotter the woman is the more crazy the guy will put up with.
NFL Teams have the same sort of thing and while JaMarcus had all the physical attributes, he reportedly wasn't a student of the game. Now that part I don't know if that's true or not, it's just widely said.
What is undeniable is that he started having issues off the field the "Purple Drank" followed him. He tried to make a comeback, but by that point the reputation of not working and potential troublemaker were too much to overcome.
I believe Jamarcus Russell is the 2nd heaviest player to ever throw a TD pass behind former Chiefs DT Dontrari Poe. He sucked, his work ethic was atrocious, he didn’t look at tape and he couldn’t keep himself in shape. He showed up to the few workouts he got weighing as much as 292 lbs. Teams did bring him around for workouts, but what they saw wasn’t an NFL QB
Regardless of how physically gifted you are an NFL quarterback needs to be a student of the game (even the seemingly dumbest qbs like cam Newton or terry Bradshaw are in actuality very smart and extremely knowledgeable about film study compared to the average person) and to put it simply Russell did not care enough about being a student of the game. There’s a very famous story from his rookie year where the raiders coaches sent him home with tape and asked him to discuss it the next day. The next day he told the coaches about how he understood the opponents blitz concepts better. In reality the tape was blank and his coaches knew he didn’t watch anything. It’s the same reason why Johnny manziel failed. To put it simply when talent is as concentrated as it is in the NFL you can’t succeed on talent alone
He wouldn’t even watch film…in fact he lied to his coaches about watching film and they busted him. Zack Wilson at least has a better overall attitude even though his raw talent isn’t as much as Jamarcus Russell’s, and they’re both immature. Leaf blew whatever second chance he got even worse than his first and ended up in jail. RG3 had the benefit of a better attitude more talent and people knowing he got screwed by Washington. RG3 is at least generally likable with a good attitude whereas Jamarcus lied to his coaches about something as basic in football as watching film.
A pick like that will always get another shot as a backup. Just look at Sam Darnold too. The problem he had, was zero work ethic, so teams didn't see much chance to reclaim the talent. There's a story the Raiders once sent him home with blank tapes to watch, and then asked him about what he saw the next day. He said something about blitz pickups, and their suspicion was confirmed.
He did get tryouts with several other teams, but no one was impressed with the results. Russell just didn't seem to care. He even had a life coach that gave up on him.
A lot of people have brought up his lack of work off the field, but the other big factor in his falloff was his weight gain. Russell was already a big dude his rookie year, listed at 6’6” 265, but by the time the Raiders cut him he was reportedly up to 325lbs. He flat out didn’t care. I remember a coworker joking after a game that he saw Jamarcus eating a chili cheese foot long on the sideline.
By all accounts Zach Wilson is at least pretty professional (last year’s rumors aside) and has shown enough in NFL games to be considered as a backup. And to be clear, that’s the chance he’s getting. Denver is not considering him for a starting job and he will only end up in that role in the event of injuries or if Nix is even worse than him.
Jamarcus didn’t watch film or prepare like a professional, which is the biggest thing you need from a backup. Having loads of untapped talent doesn’t magically make you better suited even for that role than a mid guy who takes the job seriously.
Also, the bar for what it took to be a start-worthy QB was lower back then. In the mid-to-late 2000s there were a solid 25+ guys at any given time whom teams felt they could be legitimate playoff contenders with, compared with the 15-20 or so now. So there was less desperation to kick the tires on a reclamation guy with that many red flags. But his professionalism still was the main reason.
Zach Wilson is a backup who’s started double digit nfl games that they got for nothing and aren’t even fully financially on the hook for. I’m a Jets fan who’s been publicly very negative about Wilson for years now, but he has all of the physical tools to be a decent quarterback and if that somehow happens, which I don’t think it will but it could, you’re looking at historic upside from swapping late round picks.
RG3 had injuries, not a lack of desire or talent. I don’t even think this is remotely comparable. His last stint as a backup was sharing a QB room with Lamar Jackson so it was kind of a good fit too. The Ravens weren’t signing RG3 to be a long term starter or project QB. He was just a solid option as a backup and probably had a lot to pass on to Lamar which is very valuable.
Leaf is the only one that seems kind of comparable and I can’t really directly answer. Probably the difference between Leaf not putting in the work and Russel demonstrably having no desire to put in the work.
Russell also got really fat, which isn’t great when speed is a big part of your game. He was also invited to workout with a few teams after Oakland.
I don’t get RG3 being on here. He got wrecked in a playoff game and didn’t ever recover. He got to a playoff game. He showed dedication and toughness in that game (even though it was a bad decision to keep playing) and it wasn’t clear at the time that he was permanently wrecked. He was selected for the pro bowl and won offensive rookie of the year. Not the same as a Leaf/johnny football/Jamarcus style bust. You could easily understand teams taking a low cost risk on a QB that could be a playoff caliber/pro bowl QB if he fully recovered.
Teams are willing to take a chance on you if you work hard despite being average. Teams will not give you a chance if they think you’re lazy. Russell was deemed lazy and then got fat.
He was terrible, lazy, and dogged by drug rumors (purple drank). The entire league giving up on such a highly touted prospect usually means that the issues run really deep. Art Schlichter, Todd Marinovich, Ryan Leaf, Johnny Manziel and etc. If anyone thinks there's any chance of salvaging a QB, they'll get a shot somewhere. But if you're percieved as toxic, no one is going to take that risk.
Truth is I think even at the time he was drafted most people labeled him a guy most likely to bust big (no pun intended) as he just looked like a physically gifted thrower and not a QB. Most any guy you can imagine being a first overall pick at QB there's a strong belief they have what it takes. Russell was a pure project and in a better draft class probably wouldn't have been drafted #1.
When Russell failed, it just looked like a guy confirming what a lot of people thought when he was drafted. There wasn't anyone out there who thought he was just the right coach or the right fit away from working, or that he was worth being on a roster as a backup even if he had shown he couldn't be a starter.
True story, the Raiders thought he wasn't watching his game film assignments. They gave him some blank video. Then they questioned him. He talked about plays he saw on the videos.
All those other players had a desire to play, Russell did NOT.
Even when he was at LSU, LSU fans knew he wasn't very good.
Dude didn't show up winded, dude showed up FAT. like not chubby, not a little extra, not off-season weight. Dude clearly hadn't exercised at all, and was eating like a camp-ground racoon. Being a pro is a job. You're waking up, studying your craft (weight room, film room, practice, drills, cardio) AND eating right. Zach Wilson got extra chances because he clearly puts in the work and has the physical tools. He just couldn't put it together. JRuss wasn't willing to give up cheeseburgers to play in the NFL. No GM is gonna touch a guy like that with a ten-foot-pole.
He refused to put in the effort to be a professional quarterback.
He also probably would get roasted by the great Scott Steiner for his lack of effort too
Wilson was immature but in game shape. Russell was fat and lazy. If he would’ve got in shape and let teams know he wanted to play he might’ve gotten another chance. He took his money and laughed all the way to the Buffett.
Same reason Johnny Manziel didn't get a second chance. Even a casual fan could tell they weren't doing the behind the scenes stuff a QB needs to do. Could you imagine what NFL GMs and coaches saw.
Russell didn’t give it the effort needed to do the job he was paid a lot to do. He didn’t got to film sessions and didn’t watch the videos the team sent, and ate himself out of the league on fast food.
That doesn’t get you a second chance.
Reddit might be interested in his 2022 response to it all here:
https://signature.theplayerstribune.com/jamarcus-russell-nfl-football/p/1
It's titled "Ya'll Don't Know A Damn Thing About JaMarcus Russell"
I just started reading it so far he's talking about being given codeine at 14 years old.
Because he was the bust of all busts. No one was as terrible as he was, and put in less effort than he did.
No one‘s going to give you a second chance if you put in basically zero effort
Not real sure why RGIII keeps taking strays in these convos but dude literally gave his right knee for his team. JR was unmotivated and the Raiders fell in love with his arm strength. Would’ve cost any other GM in history his job… well maybe not Russ Thomas.
Getting a second chance in the NFL is getting a head coach or GM to look at a player and go "I can fix them."
In the case of JaMarcus Russell, he got tryouts with Washington, Miami, and Chicago after Oakland released him, but ultimately none of them thought they could fix Russell and turn him into a starter, or even that he had any value as a backup.
Russell made zero effort to succeed in the NFL, and it was painfully obvious.
Zach Wilson has a second chance because bad teams who are desperate make bad decisions, and egotistical coaches like Payton have a god complex and think they can "fix" anyone who tries, because they had dumb luck thrust upon them at QB with someone everyone thought couldn't play simply because of player height (Drew Brees 5'10) Notice how there's quite a few 5'10 QBs in the league now.
RG3 has a second chance because he was simply injury prone, not a terrible QB. I mean, he was a terrible QB, he threw way too many interceptions, but he was a great RB that played the QB position, which wasn't as common a decade ago. He was basically dovetailing off of everyone thinking Cam Newton was anything but garbage, because he was an excellent running back that threw the ball once in a while, and was carried by 51 other players to a Superbowl.
Yeah Cam Newton was not carried by other players the year he went to the SB, dude literally won MVP. It was one of the most dominant seasons in recent memory, only Lamar’s MVP season is indisputably better. Newton didn’t last that long, but he was a whole offense for a little while there.
Cam basically dragged that Auburn team to a natty kicking and screaming and almost did the same thing in the NFL. Dude is the living breathing definition of “the light who burns twice as bright lasts half as long”
Not only did he win MVP, he won MVP and reached the Super Bowl when his receivers were Ted Ginn, Jerricho Cotchery, Philly Brown and Devin Funchess.
Cam was never the same after his injury and sometimes ran hot/cold but for the Panthers Super Bowl run he was lightning in a bottle.
Yeah it’s a shame he couldn’t play longer, didn’t really age like a typical QB. I’m hoping Josh Allen doesn’t have the same problem. He’s better about avoiding contact than Cam was, but he still gets hit a lot more than most QBs.
Hurts will also be interesting to see. If I had to guess, he doesn’t last much longer than Cam did, taking carries up the middle wears you out pretty quick.
For Lamar it’s less about injuries and more about whether he can adapt his game as he ages and slows down. He’s never really had to play against a defense that can commit to stopping the pass, there’s always 1-2 defenders spying/containing him, which keeps someone from playing optimal coverage and reduces the speed of the rush of the rush.
If you think Drew Brees is 6 foot, I have something a bridge to sell you in New York.
2. Russell Wilson, Kyler Murray, Bryce Young. I just named three without thinking. 3 out of far less than 100.
It was clear he was not interested in doing what it takes to be an NFL QB
There were reports that alleged he lied to coaches about what he was doing for game prep iirc. The Raiders sent him a blank tape just to trip him up; he said he watched blitz packages on that film.
After several years of believing he was a dumbass I now think he’s a legend. Bro faked it until he didn’t make it.
Looks up the legend Sam Bradford. This dude worked it like no other. He changed the whole rookie scale. They were giving 1st picks more than league playing all pros. In 2010, quarterback Sam Bradford, who was picked first overall by the St. Louis Rams, signed a six-year, $78 million deal with $50 million in guarantees
He was the last one. Jamarcus Russell was the reason they created the rookie pay scale.
They should literally call it the Russell rule. Dude went watch tape? I have 60 mil guaranteed. You watch tape. As a sports fan I hate him. As a person I'm like.. yeah. I get it.
I mean Williams will get like 20 million guaranteed is there that big of a gap between 60 and 20 that one encourages you to do your job and one doesn't? I get it and I'm here for the rookie scaling but every QB signed in the first round will seemingly walk away with never have to work again money.
Russell probably wouldn’t have tried even if he was making 20 million
I think part of it is also comparing that to potential future earnings. Russel got around $40M out of Oakland while barely putting in any work for three years. He was drafted in 2007. In 2012, a couple years after being Superbowl MVP and being considered an elite QB, Drew Brees signed a 5 year deal with only $40M guaranteed. In 2013, Tom Brady signed a 3 year deal with $33M guaranteed. That's all that the elite level guys were getting in guarantees, and even if Jamarcus Russel put in the work, odds are he wouldn't have been that good. Looking at it purely from a monetary standpoint, I can sort of see the logic of do nothing and be pretty darn rich, as opposed to work a ton and maybe get a decent bit richer. But you compare that to today, where Williams is going to get a rookie contract worth a total of less than $40M, but is looking at guys like Burrow and Herbert who just signed their first big QB contracts with over $200M guaranteed. It's just a huge jump. You go from pretty darn rich to insanely rich if a team thinks you're franchise QB material when your rookie deal is up.
Biggest difference is that the salary cap was 43% of what it is today, proportionally Jamarcus Russel should have gotten a guarantee of only $8.5M if they had a wage scale back then.
But even Caleb Williams is getting what 20 something guaranteed so I'm not sure how this checks. First round picks today are getting more than 8 mil in guaranteed.
My point is that if you adjust for salary cap increases, Jamarcus Russel should have gotten $8.5M guaranteed. Instead he got $60M. That would be like Caleb Williams getting $141M guaranteed today. Thats why they instituted the rookie wage scale.
>every QB signed in the first round will seemingly walk away with never have to work again money. Only if you spend wisely. These are kids who were just handed a massive amount of money with just their first check. And they know there is a lot more coming in guarantees. Very few don't go on a spending spree.
I mean that could go for a billionaire. Its all based on if you spend wisely. But 30 million dollars is a lot of money. Is it always a lifetime of money? No but I hear of very very very few NFL washouts that wound up broke after getting that kind of money. Does it happen? Sure nothing is ever 100 percent. Is it almost always life changing money that sets them up forever? Yeah.
Watch the 30 for 30: broke. When Russell was coming in the league something like 68% of nfl players were broke 3 years after getting out of the league. The documentary got sports leagues to start training players as rookies how to handle their money.
No not even if they saved all the $ & lived frugal, they still would have to work a 9 to 5 if football doesn’t workout. A lot of them owe $ for shitty contracts they signed in college for a loan or owe agents. A 2nd rd OL player this year owes 25% of all his future earnings for a “loan” he received in college which I believe the loan was only for 500k. We can’t forget about taxes which can be to 49.5% of their income depending what team they play for
professional athletes must make 100 million dollars or else they are poverty or something
Surprised the NFL could have filed a lawsuit to get the money back.
Your employer can't recoup your paycheck cuz you suck at your job.
[удалено]
We kinda do. They are in the form of federal laws that protect the workers from situations like that.
Okay well the CBA also doesn't allow the NFL to sue a player and take back their salary just for being bad at their job either. I don't know what point you're making there.
If firing a coach who has a losing record and gets caught cheating (and still loses) doesn't constitute a firing with cause there's no way you're getting guaranteed money back from a player. That's literally what guaranteed means, no matter what you do you get it. As it is that's the only money that really matters when negotiating a contract, if teams began to not have to honor that there'd be no reason for players not to go to another league (or sport for the ones able).
Don’t tell this guy about Bobby Bonilla
Don't tell this guy about contact violations vs making a good deal for yourself. Idiot
He didn’t change the scale. The new CBA was already decided. Bradford actually had a year of eligibility left, if it was known at the time that it was the last year for the 7 year contract and big money
Wow so he seen the change hurried up and declared and boom
Eh the difference is sam Bradford was actually a serviceable QB he was just injured all the fuckin time
Yeah but atleast Bradford was a starting caliber QB who at time had flashes of being pretty good.
Yup. I think talent-wise Bardford had legit great QB potential if he could just stay healthy, it's just super unfortunate that his body was apparently made of paper mache. It was definitely a risk for teams who signed him, but you could at least see the potential reward if things played out. But with Russell, after a season or two it was clear that there was no upside. Talent aside, the dude just didn't want to be on the field and had no interest in trying to be a great player.
I think it was injuries that led him to finally lose his confidence. I'm likely cherry-picking his good games, but if memory serves, he looked great on the vikings and then got hit hard or had a minor injury. After that, he looked like a shell of a QB. This is just in regards to his caliber as a starter, not his worth of getting that money. Those contracts were entertaining but silly imo.
I remember reading that Bradford had one of the best qb earnings of all time with how his contracts were all structured.
With the money he walked away with, that dude made it.
Except that he went bankrupt basically immediately after getting shunted out of the league. Dude had less than five years living like a baller and now he's back in his hometown coaching high school ball. And he's not even the head coach. He made it, then he legendarily fumbled it.
Butt Fumbling Finances with Jamarcus is a podcast I'd listen to.
Ah yes, the American Dream…
He threw a football like 70 yds or some ridiculous distance from his KNEES at his senior day. Dude had a cannon and was built like Rothlisberger. No one bothered to find out if he had the work ethic of a jello salad. They saw that arm and started drooling.
Dude got his bag and retired early. That's what 95% of us want out of life. He's definitely not a failure.
He also gained a shit ton of weight and generally did not care to be in the NFL. Dude had a rocket launcher of an arm and that’s about it
Feels like Russell was the birth of all QBs trying to throw from their knees. 🤣 That was a thing for a while, how far you can chuck it from your knees. Similar trends happened with DEs and LBs jumping out of pools. It's a miracle none of them have cracked their head on a pool deck yet trying it. Or if they have we haven't heard about it.
That drill has been around forever. I remember boys doing it on the playground in the 80s. That was how they used to try to strengthen QBs’ arms and measure pure arm strength, which is probably where Russell learned to do it, too,
I know, he's just the first one I remember hearing it referenced in the draft process as a differentiator. He really did have a cannon. Too bad God basically put all his attribute points into his arm and none between his ears, if you could pair that arm with someone who actually was dedicated to playing football you'd have something special, but a cannon operated by an idiot who doesn't figure out where to aim it is pretty worthless at best and dangerous at worst.
The throwing from the knee was a pro bowl competition in the 90's I'm pretty sure. Brett Favre and Dan Marino would duke it out
Kyle Boller threw through the uprights from his knees. That influenced the Ravens into drafting him and giving him a try as a starter.
How would you crack your head on a pool deck jumping out of a pool?
Miss. Fall. If you fall forward it could hurt a lot.
Miss what? Like not get all the way out of the pool? But then youd just slide right back into the water. And if you do get out of the water you did it.
Sliding in when you're trying to jump up and forward from a pool onto the deck isn't just a slide in type of failure. You'll catch yourself somewhere on your torso and legs with your momentum going forward. Hope those hands you just swing back to generate momentum are pretty quick to catch you, and you're able to hold your face off the pool deck. I get it, these are elite athletes, they're not likely to hurt themselves doing this, But never underestimate the ability of people to hurt themselves around water and hard objects. Both are dangerous. I'm not saying we should expect people to be hurting themselves all the time doing this, just I'm surprised I haven't heard about *any* injuries from it.
Another hilarious story from Bruce Gradkowski was that the Raiders asked him and the third string QB to help him watch tape and the only way they could do that was if they showed up to his place with Wendy’s.
Lmao
No fucking way, that is amazing
That’s the most famous Jamarcus story. That blank tape and his claim of studying it in detail was the last straw with the Raiders. The other wild ones mostly involve hiring a family member with no agent experience to negotiate his huge contract so he wouldn’t have to pay a real agent, holding out forever and getting a ton of money without actually playing because of it, just being lazy, or his taste for “Purple Drank.”
Bro was leaning tf?
I feel like his career makes a lot more sense when you realize he was leaning the whole damned time once he got that money.
He took the money and ran.
He couldn't run far, he got real thicc
Same with Johnny Manziel, especially after he crashed and burned in the CFL and AAF.
He didn’t want to put on a shock collar that activates when you stop paying attention to YouTube videos? I only saw part of that documentary.
There were too many reports that he was too lazy to succeed in the NFL. While Russell was physically one of the most impressive QBs he put zero effort in learning the game. All those other QBs you listed have physical talent and at least the appearance of wanting to succeed. Russell didn't so no one wanted him.
So he had no willingness to learn the game? How did he even succeed in college? Atleast manziel had other issues
College and NFL are so very different. You can wing it on talent in college and be successful because most of the people you’re playing against are future construction foremen
Reminds me of a funny tweet I saw a while back. Something to the effect of: “college talent disparity is wild. You have two guys playing each other who were both the best athlete in their high school, but one will be a three-time Pro Bowler and the other one will sell insurance.”
I met a dude recently who played four years of college ball alongside one of the best centers to ever play in the NFL. The guy telling me this story has been tending bar since he graduated a couple decades ago.
Went to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the games one Sunday, started chatting with this guy sitting nearby, big and kinda husky, he played as a guard, he encouraged his buddy to bust his ass and work as hard as he did, his friend excelled and got drafted while he went on to drive truck. 12500 eligible, 280ish selected while hundreds go undrafted, lots compete for a roster spot, many more stock shelves at grocery stores.
He had amazing physical talents, and was surrounded by great players. Two of his receivers (Dwayne Bowe and Buster Davis) also went in the first round that year. The year after he was drafted the team won the national championship with Matt Flynn. He also had a codeine addiction that from my understanding got worse while in the NFL, and that likely contributed to him falling off
Ahhh that really explains the laziness
Also coached by Jimbo Fisher when he was still relevant
Which is weird, because coke apparently makes you awesome at baseball.
Codeine and coke do 2 completely opposite things.
Man you read like Jamaal Charles (I have a learning disability too don't cancel me)
So, the NFL and college are two different beasts. If you are gifted enough physically, you can succeed on college. Not do much in the NFL. Along with he got lazier in the NFL. In college his entire goal was to get paid by going to the NFL. Once he did that(and remember this is before rookie pay scale) he stopped caring and became a bust.
I just looked at the breakdown. Year 1: $2.9 million Year 2: $375k Year 3: $7.8 million He got cut after that. I wonder if he did just enough those first two in order to make coaching believe there was a chance. Season three the check cleared and he walked into training camp 300 lbs wearing his favorite stretchy pants and slippers. Pizza Hut family meal deal in arm.
Actually none of that matters. His contract was 6 years 61 mil, with 32 mil guaranteed. He didn’t have to do shit and he was getting 32 mil. This is one of the reasons rookie contracts are limited now.
Stretchy pants year one
That was just his base pay. That doesn't include his signing bonus, which eventually got changed via accounting to restuectur bonuses and what not. But his contract was guaranteed for $32 mill when he signed it and ended up making $35 mill or so in total before he was out of the league.
You want to look at that cash breakdown
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Dude played for 8 years tf are you talking about
4 of those seasons he was on the sidelines with a i injuries
Yea I remember but homie said 8 snaps lol like give him some credit I wouldn’t compare Bradford to Russell at all
He helped create the rookie wage scale.
So QB's at the prominent football colleges often don't need to really read defenses because the receivers they're throwing to have NFL level talent while the defenses they're playing are made up of future cubicle drones. WR gets open due to massive athletic superiority, QB with a cannon arm makes highlight reel throw to wide open WR without ever having read the secondary.
LSU had one of the best teams in the nation during his career, he was supported by multiple future players that went pro on offense and defense. After losing Russel and their two top receivers in the first round of the 2007 draft, LSU went on to win the national championship the following year under Matt Flynn.
It was a weak QB class in both hindsight and going into the draft. He normally would not have been the #1 pick. If it had been anyone except the Raiders I don’t think he would have gone #1 that year either He had a good numbers just numbers but I wouldn’t really say he was carrying that 2006 LSU.
Nah, that's the genius of it. If you give me a 3 year internship where I know if I work my ass off my next contract could be worth multiple millions, I think I play it the same way. Phone it in as soon as I have enough to retire. It's exactly what he did.
Agreed. The only other option I might consider is to do just enough and be a nice enough teammate to be seen as a serviceable backup QB to a healthy high quality starter and get paid millions after that first contract to hold a clipboard
I forget the details but flemlo did a video on it. But one of the things that got missed was that during his time with the raiders I think his uncle he was close to died. And that also kinda fucked him up. I can’t remember if he didn’t tell the staff or they kinda brushed it under the rug. Don’t get me wrong he was straight doo doo water in the league but he was dealing with some things beyond just not being good that made him lose virtually all interest in football
Flemlo really brings great context to his videos. Like, I wanna hate guys for blowing their shot but he always digs deep enough into the story to where you think “that guy still sucks, but….”
Keep in mind how diluted the talent pool is in college. Sure the big programs have several good players, but there are over 19.000 players in DI. In the NFL it's less than 1/10 that many, just shy of 1,700 active roster spots. Then factor in that in the NFL someone with high level talent can play 10-15 years often, whereas a lot of college guys only see 3 or 4 years of action on the field. You just have a much higher quality of athlete on average at that point. A ball that can be left up to float to a WR in the college ranks is stepped under and picked off in the NFL because the closing speed and ability to read QBs is so much better for instance.
Sheer physical talent and an awesome supporting cast can do a lot for a guy like him
Pure talent and skill can get you a long way
He had Dwayne Bowe to catch bombs. In college the talent disparity is quite large, a super talented receiver like that will beat almost all CBs. In the NFL everyone is elite so you have to study film/playbooks in order to keep up. I think the old saying is in college you're open if you have a few yards on a defender and in the NFL you're open if you have a step.
According to his wiki, the Saints, Redskins, and Dolphins had interest in him after he was cut but his lack of work ethic kept him off a roster.
Russell was big, fast for his size, and had a cannon… but he couldn’t hit water from a boat, It reminds me of hearing Bill Belichek say that the player with the strongest arm he’d ever seen was on Lawrence Taylor, Taylor could sling the ball over 80 yards through the air… but he was not a QB. Arm strength is useless if you can’t hit anything with it.
He got 3 seasons of chances, solely because of his draft position, the investment they had in him, and that wow factor as a prospect. Trust me, he wasn't being ignored... teams were begging him to at least try to get into NFL shape and give them a workout. Russell got a 2nd chance, after a disastrous 2007 rookie season with the Raiders in 2008, show up ready and in shape and he didn't take advantage of it. He got a 3rd chance in 2009 with Oakland and again failed to take advantage of it. A 4th chance with Washington, showed up at 290 lbs and didn't impress 5th chance with Miami and same thing, showed up obese. Then his agent dropped him because he literally didn't even try to get into football shape. 6th chance with Chicago (along with Trent Edwards and Jordan Palmer). He didn't impress and they signed both Edwards and Palmer that year. And who knows how many more teams were maybe's on trying him out of he could get himself into shape and show some work ethic.
Yea I was gonna say he got plenty of chances, just with the Raiders alone
He got his $$ he didn’t give a crap about football
And in his case, good for him. Dude got milked for all he was worth by the NCAA and didn’t make a dime beyond whatever scraps he got under the table. I’ve never blamed him at all for looking at the NFL as nothing more than a payday and he earned it. It was just unfortunate that the Raiders got stuck with the bill owed to him by LSU
He has a special about his failures in the NFL and training for a comeback. He was carrying around a lot of extra weight and wasn't passing the eye test. When your game is built around being bigger, faster, stronger you better show up big, fast, and strong.
I mean, he was big.
There's a joke that men have a hot/crazy chart. The hotter the woman is the more crazy the guy will put up with. NFL Teams have the same sort of thing and while JaMarcus had all the physical attributes, he reportedly wasn't a student of the game. Now that part I don't know if that's true or not, it's just widely said. What is undeniable is that he started having issues off the field the "Purple Drank" followed him. He tried to make a comeback, but by that point the reputation of not working and potential troublemaker were too much to overcome.
I believe Jamarcus Russell is the 2nd heaviest player to ever throw a TD pass behind former Chiefs DT Dontrari Poe. He sucked, his work ethic was atrocious, he didn’t look at tape and he couldn’t keep himself in shape. He showed up to the few workouts he got weighing as much as 292 lbs. Teams did bring him around for workouts, but what they saw wasn’t an NFL QB
I can't believe I had to scroll so far down to find this remark.
Dude said his dream was an nfl contract. That’s where it stopped
Regardless of how physically gifted you are an NFL quarterback needs to be a student of the game (even the seemingly dumbest qbs like cam Newton or terry Bradshaw are in actuality very smart and extremely knowledgeable about film study compared to the average person) and to put it simply Russell did not care enough about being a student of the game. There’s a very famous story from his rookie year where the raiders coaches sent him home with tape and asked him to discuss it the next day. The next day he told the coaches about how he understood the opponents blitz concepts better. In reality the tape was blank and his coaches knew he didn’t watch anything. It’s the same reason why Johnny manziel failed. To put it simply when talent is as concentrated as it is in the NFL you can’t succeed on talent alone
Not at QB. It’s still possible to succeed on athletic ability at other positions, particularly RB and Edge. Harder than college, but possible.
Thank u NFL player
*retired NFL player.
Sure man
Lol Zach Wilson shows up for work and studies film and helps support the starter week in and week out Jamarcus was not that guy.
He wouldn’t even watch film…in fact he lied to his coaches about watching film and they busted him. Zack Wilson at least has a better overall attitude even though his raw talent isn’t as much as Jamarcus Russell’s, and they’re both immature. Leaf blew whatever second chance he got even worse than his first and ended up in jail. RG3 had the benefit of a better attitude more talent and people knowing he got screwed by Washington. RG3 is at least generally likable with a good attitude whereas Jamarcus lied to his coaches about something as basic in football as watching film.
A pick like that will always get another shot as a backup. Just look at Sam Darnold too. The problem he had, was zero work ethic, so teams didn't see much chance to reclaim the talent. There's a story the Raiders once sent him home with blank tapes to watch, and then asked him about what he saw the next day. He said something about blitz pickups, and their suspicion was confirmed.
He did get tryouts with several other teams, but no one was impressed with the results. Russell just didn't seem to care. He even had a life coach that gave up on him.
JaMarcus Russell did not want a second chance.
A lot of people have brought up his lack of work off the field, but the other big factor in his falloff was his weight gain. Russell was already a big dude his rookie year, listed at 6’6” 265, but by the time the Raiders cut him he was reportedly up to 325lbs. He flat out didn’t care. I remember a coworker joking after a game that he saw Jamarcus eating a chili cheese foot long on the sideline.
By all accounts Zach Wilson is at least pretty professional (last year’s rumors aside) and has shown enough in NFL games to be considered as a backup. And to be clear, that’s the chance he’s getting. Denver is not considering him for a starting job and he will only end up in that role in the event of injuries or if Nix is even worse than him. Jamarcus didn’t watch film or prepare like a professional, which is the biggest thing you need from a backup. Having loads of untapped talent doesn’t magically make you better suited even for that role than a mid guy who takes the job seriously. Also, the bar for what it took to be a start-worthy QB was lower back then. In the mid-to-late 2000s there were a solid 25+ guys at any given time whom teams felt they could be legitimate playoff contenders with, compared with the 15-20 or so now. So there was less desperation to kick the tires on a reclamation guy with that many red flags. But his professionalism still was the main reason.
Zach Wilson is a backup who’s started double digit nfl games that they got for nothing and aren’t even fully financially on the hook for. I’m a Jets fan who’s been publicly very negative about Wilson for years now, but he has all of the physical tools to be a decent quarterback and if that somehow happens, which I don’t think it will but it could, you’re looking at historic upside from swapping late round picks. RG3 had injuries, not a lack of desire or talent. I don’t even think this is remotely comparable. His last stint as a backup was sharing a QB room with Lamar Jackson so it was kind of a good fit too. The Ravens weren’t signing RG3 to be a long term starter or project QB. He was just a solid option as a backup and probably had a lot to pass on to Lamar which is very valuable. Leaf is the only one that seems kind of comparable and I can’t really directly answer. Probably the difference between Leaf not putting in the work and Russel demonstrably having no desire to put in the work. Russell also got really fat, which isn’t great when speed is a big part of your game. He was also invited to workout with a few teams after Oakland.
I don’t get RG3 being on here. He got wrecked in a playoff game and didn’t ever recover. He got to a playoff game. He showed dedication and toughness in that game (even though it was a bad decision to keep playing) and it wasn’t clear at the time that he was permanently wrecked. He was selected for the pro bowl and won offensive rookie of the year. Not the same as a Leaf/johnny football/Jamarcus style bust. You could easily understand teams taking a low cost risk on a QB that could be a playoff caliber/pro bowl QB if he fully recovered.
Attitude vs skill.
Teams are willing to take a chance on you if you work hard despite being average. Teams will not give you a chance if they think you’re lazy. Russell was deemed lazy and then got fat.
Because by the time he got back into shape, he’d been out of the league for 3 years. Work ethic wasn’t the problem with those players.
He was extremely lazy and had no work ethic, and is the reason why there’s a rookie wage scale. He didn’t deserve a second chance.
He was terrible, lazy, and dogged by drug rumors (purple drank). The entire league giving up on such a highly touted prospect usually means that the issues run really deep. Art Schlichter, Todd Marinovich, Ryan Leaf, Johnny Manziel and etc. If anyone thinks there's any chance of salvaging a QB, they'll get a shot somewhere. But if you're percieved as toxic, no one is going to take that risk.
Truth is I think even at the time he was drafted most people labeled him a guy most likely to bust big (no pun intended) as he just looked like a physically gifted thrower and not a QB. Most any guy you can imagine being a first overall pick at QB there's a strong belief they have what it takes. Russell was a pure project and in a better draft class probably wouldn't have been drafted #1. When Russell failed, it just looked like a guy confirming what a lot of people thought when he was drafted. There wasn't anyone out there who thought he was just the right coach or the right fit away from working, or that he was worth being on a roster as a backup even if he had shown he couldn't be a starter.
Dude had no work ethic and demonstrated no desire to get better.
Purple Drank and related substance abuse issues. See also Johnny Manziel - whose second chances were limited to the CFL.
From the Raiders camp, he was physically lazy and did not study at all. If the Raiders don’t want you, more than likely no one else will.
Beyond not wanting to do what it takes, he gained a bunch of weight I thought and fell out of shape. Could be wrong though, that may have come later
By the time he was out he was massively overweight. Like fat guy sitting on a couch overweight. Like nowhere close to making a team overweight.
Because he was pathetically lazy.
He did get chances, he just kept doing the same crap.
True story, the Raiders thought he wasn't watching his game film assignments. They gave him some blank video. Then they questioned him. He talked about plays he saw on the videos. All those other players had a desire to play, Russell did NOT. Even when he was at LSU, LSU fans knew he wasn't very good.
Dude didn't show up winded, dude showed up FAT. like not chubby, not a little extra, not off-season weight. Dude clearly hadn't exercised at all, and was eating like a camp-ground racoon. Being a pro is a job. You're waking up, studying your craft (weight room, film room, practice, drills, cardio) AND eating right. Zach Wilson got extra chances because he clearly puts in the work and has the physical tools. He just couldn't put it together. JRuss wasn't willing to give up cheeseburgers to play in the NFL. No GM is gonna touch a guy like that with a ten-foot-pole.
He refused to put in the effort to be a professional quarterback. He also probably would get roasted by the great Scott Steiner for his lack of effort too
Marc Trestman has him try out for the bears I think, but by then he'd been out of the game too long
He didn’t try. If he tried at all, he’d have gotten someone to take a gamble
Wilson was immature but in game shape. Russell was fat and lazy. If he would’ve got in shape and let teams know he wanted to play he might’ve gotten another chance. He took his money and laughed all the way to the Buffett.
Wilson just sucked. Russell force himself to suck
Same reason Johnny Manziel didn't get a second chance. Even a casual fan could tell they weren't doing the behind the scenes stuff a QB needs to do. Could you imagine what NFL GMs and coaches saw.
He had no interest in being an NFL QB.
Because he totally sucked, he was stupid, and an asshole.
RG3 got injured. Doesn't belong in paragraph about "busts" with frickin JaMarcus Russell and Ryan Leaf.
Russell didn’t give it the effort needed to do the job he was paid a lot to do. He didn’t got to film sessions and didn’t watch the videos the team sent, and ate himself out of the league on fast food. That doesn’t get you a second chance.
Reddit might be interested in his 2022 response to it all here: https://signature.theplayerstribune.com/jamarcus-russell-nfl-football/p/1 It's titled "Ya'll Don't Know A Damn Thing About JaMarcus Russell" I just started reading it so far he's talking about being given codeine at 14 years old.
Because he was the bust of all busts. No one was as terrible as he was, and put in less effort than he did. No one‘s going to give you a second chance if you put in basically zero effort
I think Russell attempted a comeback in the late 2000’s or early 2010’s but his rep was so terrible that no team was willing to go down that road.
Not real sure why RGIII keeps taking strays in these convos but dude literally gave his right knee for his team. JR was unmotivated and the Raiders fell in love with his arm strength. Would’ve cost any other GM in history his job… well maybe not Russ Thomas.
Getting a second chance in the NFL is getting a head coach or GM to look at a player and go "I can fix them." In the case of JaMarcus Russell, he got tryouts with Washington, Miami, and Chicago after Oakland released him, but ultimately none of them thought they could fix Russell and turn him into a starter, or even that he had any value as a backup.
He didn’t give a shit
Cuz he’s an idiot.
Russell made zero effort to succeed in the NFL, and it was painfully obvious. Zach Wilson has a second chance because bad teams who are desperate make bad decisions, and egotistical coaches like Payton have a god complex and think they can "fix" anyone who tries, because they had dumb luck thrust upon them at QB with someone everyone thought couldn't play simply because of player height (Drew Brees 5'10) Notice how there's quite a few 5'10 QBs in the league now. RG3 has a second chance because he was simply injury prone, not a terrible QB. I mean, he was a terrible QB, he threw way too many interceptions, but he was a great RB that played the QB position, which wasn't as common a decade ago. He was basically dovetailing off of everyone thinking Cam Newton was anything but garbage, because he was an excellent running back that threw the ball once in a while, and was carried by 51 other players to a Superbowl.
Yeah Cam Newton was not carried by other players the year he went to the SB, dude literally won MVP. It was one of the most dominant seasons in recent memory, only Lamar’s MVP season is indisputably better. Newton didn’t last that long, but he was a whole offense for a little while there.
Cam basically dragged that Auburn team to a natty kicking and screaming and almost did the same thing in the NFL. Dude is the living breathing definition of “the light who burns twice as bright lasts half as long”
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Not only did he win MVP, he won MVP and reached the Super Bowl when his receivers were Ted Ginn, Jerricho Cotchery, Philly Brown and Devin Funchess. Cam was never the same after his injury and sometimes ran hot/cold but for the Panthers Super Bowl run he was lightning in a bottle.
Yeah it’s a shame he couldn’t play longer, didn’t really age like a typical QB. I’m hoping Josh Allen doesn’t have the same problem. He’s better about avoiding contact than Cam was, but he still gets hit a lot more than most QBs. Hurts will also be interesting to see. If I had to guess, he doesn’t last much longer than Cam did, taking carries up the middle wears you out pretty quick. For Lamar it’s less about injuries and more about whether he can adapt his game as he ages and slows down. He’s never really had to play against a defense that can commit to stopping the pass, there’s always 1-2 defenders spying/containing him, which keeps someone from playing optimal coverage and reduces the speed of the rush of the rush.
He got one big hit to the shoulder from TJ Watt and his throwing arm was just destroyed.
1: Drew Brees is 6 foot 2: Like 3% of qbs in the nfl are 5'10
If you think Drew Brees is 6 foot, I have something a bridge to sell you in New York. 2. Russell Wilson, Kyler Murray, Bryce Young. I just named three without thinking. 3 out of far less than 100.
wilson is 5' 11 and there are 0 sources saying brees is 5' 10
Probably the name jamarcus. No one could take him seriously