(Overweight?) Russell getting comfortable with receivers

By Anthony Carroll  |   Wednesday, May 13, 2009  |  Comments( 13 )

Oakland Raiders
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Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell must be eating brain food. One source says he’s gaining weight; another source thinks he’s become a smarter player on the field.

Contra Costa Times beat writer Jerry McDonald has noticed one change in the 23-year-old QB thus far: his weight. Russell was listed in the 260-pound region last season, but has been no stranger to substantial weight fluctuations in his short NFL career. According to McDonald, he’s looking less and less like a QB this offseason.

“Russell, as least with the Raiders, has not been a well-cut athlete and his body-type looks more like some of the offensive linemen than a quarterback,” McDonald wrote last week.

There’s better news coming from inside Oakland’s locker room, though.

Third-year wideout Johnnie Lee Higgins thinks Russell -- extra weight or not -- is becoming more in-tune with his offense. Higgins sees improvements in Russell’s pre-snap reads and in his overall timing with the offense.

“He is looking more into the defense,” Higgins said on Sunday. “He is talking to us more and we are just getting the timing together.”

If Higgins isn’t stretching the truth, that’s a good early sign for Oakland. More than ever, Russell needs to be confident in his young wide receivers this season, especially Higgins.

To say last season was an off-year for the wide receivers in Oakland would be a massive understatement. The top wideout on the roster was Higgins. That doesn’t say much, though, because he probably would’ve been the fourth-best pass catcher on any other NFL squad. The 185-pounder had just 22 grabs for 366 yards and four TDs, ahead of any other wide receiver by 140 yards. Only Higgins and fellow youngster Chaz Schilens had over 200 yards receiving on the season.

Despite an expectedly bolstered run game, Oakland can’t afford to field another last-ranked (148.1 yards per game) pass attack in 2009. Team owner Al Davis and second-year head coach Tom Cable are banking on speed to make all the difference this upcoming season.

“Coach said the slowest time among the receivers is a 4.33 in a 40-yard dash so there is just more speed and ability there,” Higgins said this week.

Very controversial first-round pick Darrius Heyward-Bey is a huge part of the equation. The 22-year-old recorded the fastest 40 time among all receivers in the draft, clocking in at 4.3 seconds.

“We just want to keep on pushing,” Higgins added. “We ended the year really great and we just have to keep making plays whether you are a receiver, running back, tight end, or quarterback.”

“It’s like a big brotherhood. We are helping everyone get better.”
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About Anthony Carroll

Anthony Carroll began writing for RealFootball365.com on Sept. 26, 2005, making him one of the longest tenured contributors to the “365” team. As a senior writer, Anthony has taken on the task of delivering original content to the silver and black faithful year round, despite having to deal...
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CommentsComments: 13  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
Xx_TRµ£RÃ¥DÃ_xX		04:52 AM
05/13/2009
SAME OL SH!!!T!!!!! RAIDER HATERS BASHING J-ROCS SIZE, THE QB'S TAKEN BEFORE & AFTER ( V. YOUNG, M. LINERT, B. Quin exc) HAVE...
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No.2
06:20 AM
05/13/2009
Thank you for feeding the ignorant stereotype of Raider fans and for screaming at us. Russell could weigh 400 lbs, what I am...
No.3
EZRaider		08:14 AM
05/13/2009
True, for $70m he could afford a treadmill or 2, but its still May. He can drop the weight. I just hope he can handle the weight...
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