Win or lose, Russell should start

By JayMcrey  |   Thursday, July 16, 2009  |  Comments( 12 )

Oakland Raiders
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I know the last six years have been difficult to endure for Oakland's players and fans, but is the prospect of another losing season worth the damage it could do if they bench JaMarcus Russell in favor of a 39 year old veteran in the twilight of his career? I don't think the possible risk is worth the perceived reward. Lets be realistic. JaMarcus Russell is not Tarvaris Jackson, and Jeff Garcia is certainly not Brett Favre. I agree that at this point in his development there are still many unanswered questions concerning Russell's work ethic and leadership. Questions that Jeff Garcia has already answered over the course of his career.

Garcia is a proven NFL quarterback with 4 Pro Bowl's to his credit, and he has taken three teams to the playoffs; the 49ers in 2001 and 2002, the Eagles in 06, and the Buc's in 07. It sounds like a no-brainer. Young team, veteran QB with great career stats; 161 td's only 83 int's 87.5 passer rating, over 25,000 yards (40,000 if you include CFL stats). So what's the problem? Simple, he's 39 years old. Not that that's a bad thing, but he also hasn't started 16 games in a season since 2002. Last season in Tampa Bay he was named the starter for the opening game against the Saints, and performed so poorly that Jon Gruden benched him in favor of Brian Griese. He did return however after Griese was injured in week 4, and put up pretty solid numbers for the year, though there was one glaring loss he suffered in week 17 that kept the Buc's out of the playoffs.

The case for starting JaMarcus Russell I'll admit is based more on hypotheticals, and circumstantial evidence, but his case is still quite compelling.

Exhibit A; Well he's a 1st overall draft pick whom we paid a lot of money to because he's the future of the franchise.

Exhibit B; While I wouldn't say he had an outstanding season last year, I saw enough to make me think that he's got the potential to be good, really good, and I saw that him do that in a pretty bad offense with no O-line no #1 wide receiver, and no help from the defense. Oh, and playing with an interim head coach also.

Exhibit C: John Elway, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, Steve Young, and Peyton Manning. What's that you ask? What could all of these NFL legends, Super Bowl champions, Hall of Fame, and Future Hall of Fame QB's have to do with alleged "draft bust" JaMarcus Russell. They are but a few of the many current, and former superstars who posted remarkably similar statistics in their first full year as a starting QB in the NFL. I chose this group for two reasons, one; they all posted lower passer ratings than JaMarcus Russell, and two; they all have multiple Super Bowl rings (with the exception of Peyton cause he ain't done yet). The most obvious comparison is John Elway of course whose first season of merit left him with a promising 76.8 passer rating, not to shabby. The most interesting however is the comparison to Steve Young. In 1985 Young came to the NFL after spending two years in the USFL. In 1986 while playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a franchise that bore a notable resemblance to today's Oakland Raiders, Young started 14 games in what would be his forth year as a professional football player. The following comparison speaks for itself:

JaMarcus Russell 198/368 2432yds 53.8% 13tds 8int r77.1
Steve Young 195/363 2282yds 53.7% 8tds 13int r65.5

Young was traded to San Francisco after that season and the Bucs remained a mediocre team for the next decade. Young played as a back up to Joe Montana until 1990 and then became the full time starter in1991. He retired in '99 with multiple championships, and a career passer rating of 96.8. The Bucs eventually got better in time to blowout Oakland in Superbowl XXXVII, but one has to wonder, what if they had just given Steve Young a little more time.

At 39 years old Garcia maybe talented enough to pull out a couple more wins, than Russell could this year, but where will he be next year? Benching Russell this year may look good in the short term, but the potential damage it could do to his confidence and progression will could cost us a very promising future. Russell should start win or lose.
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