JaMarcus Russell doesn’t care about the money. He just wants to be an NFL quarterback again.
Sports Illustrated recently profiled the former LSU and Oakland Raiders QB, who went from first overall draft pick in 2007 to out of the league less than three years later.
Viewed as arguably the biggest bust in NFL draft history, Russell attempted an unsuccessful comeback in 2013 and last year, and the SI feature revealed he wrote a letter to each of the 32 teams asking for an opportunity to try out “without any compensation.” Thus far, no team has taken him up on that offer.
“Whatever it is — I can be the water boy and work my way into the scout team,” Russell said. “It doesn’t matter. I’d go play for free. I think there’s plenty of room for me. I think so.”
While Russell’s determination is admirable, it’s hard to imagine any team taking a flier on a 30-year-old quarterback who hasn’t thrown an NFL pass in seven years and never proved he could succeed at that level in the first place.
