The inevitable has finally turned into reality as the Oakland Raiders decided to officially cut ties with their former bust, errr 1st overall pick Jamarcus Russell on Thursday. Much of Russell’s pre-draft hype was a result of his phenomenal workout during which he threw a 60 yard pass from his knees and made the ball whistle through sound barriers. Raiders owner Al Davis has long been known as a sucker for the workout warriors and Russell won the heart of the old softee with his cannon arm and imposing physique.

Things really got off to a rocky start in Oakland for the number one overall selection as he held out for all of training camp and the opening weekend of the season after failing to reach a contract agreement with the team. His rookie campaign was brief considering he got little work with the team, but even years two and three were nothing to write home about as the strong armed signal caller has completed just 52.1 percent of his passes during his career. What has often been the most criticized aspect of the promising young player is his work ethic (or lack thereof) as Russell often arrived at camp out of shape and not at all ready to work on his craft.

There have been quarterbacks with difficult first chapters to their careers only to bounce back after a change of scenery and perhaps that can happen for Russell. At only 24 years of age, some team is going to take a chance on signing him to a league minimum deal and get him into camp for competition. One potential fit is with the Arizona Cardinals where the team is not sold on former 1st round selection Matt Leinart and the Derek Anderson signing certainly isn’t a long-term solution either. Many have also floated out the possibility of a landing with the Washington Redskins where there new head coach Mike Shanahan has done wonders with different quarterbacks in the past and could reinvigorate Russell’s work ethic learning behind Donovan McNabb for a year or two. Even the New England Patriots have been discussed as potential suitors where Bill Belichick is no stranger to reclamation projects and learning behind one of league’s best in Tom Brady could be a humbling experience for an athlete with tremendous potential.

All of there stops of possibilities, but none of them will be willing to bring Russell into the fold unless he shows some sense of understanding his past mistakes and willingness to correct those shortcomings. It will be a long road back to what was expected of him just three short years ago as the number one overall pick, but stranger things have happened. There is a ton of football left in Russell’s future if he chooses to rededicate himself and shows a selfless love for the game again as a competitor.

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