Let me get this straight. JaMarcus Russell was a bust with the Raiders because he has sleep apnea.
That's what he'd like us to believe, apparently. Jon Wertheim, a writer for Sports Illustrated, recently journeyed to Russell's hometown of Mobile, Ala., and induced him to sit down for an interview. Most of the discussion, naturally, involved how Russell, after he was picked No. 1 in the 2007 draft, spent three unsightly seasons in Oakland before being cut by the Raiders. In the process, he pocketed more than $30 million. He hasn't caught on with any other NFL team.
Russell's remarks to the magazine were instructive. He claimed sleep apnea caused him to fall asleep in team meetings, which was one of the most damning accusations against him. He also said former Raiders coach Tom Cable was two-faced, telling Russell that he was doing great and telling others just the opposite.
As for his future, Russell said this: "What if I don't make it back to the NFL? I'll be OK. Being a competitor, I feel like I have unfinished business. Like, 'It can't end like this.' "
If that sounds contradictory, welcome to the maddening muddle that was – and apparently still is – Russell's personality.
I applaud Wertheim for his diligence in tracking down Russell.
Two years ago, I spent more than two days in Mobile and couldn't locate him. He was supposedly out of town. The people who surrounded Russell and truly cared about him – including his high school football coach and one of his guidance counselors – painted a picture of a young man who was "scared and lonely" and not exactly sure of how he ended up as such a football washout.
The thing is, Russell didn't really felt comfortable outside Mobile and probably didn't really want to leave.
As he grew up, Russell was doted on by his mother and then was smothered in praise after leading his high school to the state championship game as a freshman. He chose LSU as his college over Alabama because he thought Baton Rouge reminded him more of Mobile than did Tuscaloosa. Russell loved being the local hero, loved lavishing some of his money on Mobile friends and charities, loved it when people fawned over him and asked for his autograph. When he moved to Oakland and the East Bay, it was a major culture clash as he faced metropolitan living and harsh criticism for the first time.
And when Wertheim finally got his interview, Russell chose to do it in a neighborhood barbershop, with some regulars sitting along the wall as sort of a cheering section for his answers.
His summation about what really happened with the Raiders will surely receive the most attention: "It felt sometimes like everything fell back on me. I take some responsibility. But I was only one guy. I may have missed a throw. But I didn't give up 42 points. I didn't miss a block."
Russell still doesn't understand. It wasn't his missed throws on game days that turned his teammates and coaches against him. It was that he seemed indifferent toward improving in practice, so that he would miss fewer throws in future games. That had nothing to do with sleep apnea.
Still, Russell is a sweet, spoiled and overgrown kid, not an evil one. He is 26, young enough to resurrect his career if he wishes. But if he thinks he can just sit around and wait for NFL phone calls, he's deluding himself.
Last fall, Russell reportedly flew to Miami for a tryout with the Dolphins. After the tryout, the Miami front office had booked Russell for a flight out that evening. Russell asked if he could stick around another night at team expense so that he could visit South Beach. He received no contract offer.
Frustration and sadness are Russell's legacy.
Two years ago, directly across the street from the football practice field at his old high school, stood a brightly painted cocktail lounge called Mingo's Social Club. I envisioned a 50-year-old Russell holding court at Mingo's one day in 2035, rambling to his pals about how he'd been the No. 1 NFL draft pick but was not treated right and didn't get a fair shake.
I guess Russell substituted a barber chair for the bar stool. And I was off by 24 years.
Russell still showing why he was an NFL washout - Sacramento Sports - Kings, 49ers, Raiders, High School Sports | Sacramento Bee
