You can say the Oakland Raiders finally unleashed JaMarcus Russell in
Week 17.
Depending on your definition of the word "unleashed."
The No. 1 overall pick of the '07 draft received his first NFL start
Sunday over three months after signing a six-year, $68 million contract.
Russell had attempted just 35 passes prior to Sunday's 30-17 defeat at
home against the San Diego Chargers, but he attempted 31 throws in the
losing effort.
The 22-year-old finished the game with a 91.3 passer rating and a 74.2
completion percentage. However, you certainly can't say he "aired it out."
Of Russell's 23 completions, 14 went for 10 or fewer yards, and 22 were
fewer than 20 yards. The sole completion that went for more was a
32-yard touchdown to Jerry Porter in the closing minutes of the third
quarter.
"It was good, my first touchdown pass in this stadium," the ex-LSU
standout said after the game. "It was fun. I had a lot more time to see
everything and really get a feel."
Porter was one of only three wide receivers to catch a ball from
Russell, with his other 20 completions going to either running backs or
tight ends. Rookie target Zach Miller led the team with a career-high
eight grabs for 84 yards, with halfback Dominic Rhodes close behind with
six catches for 42 yards.
Rhodes also rushed 29 times on the game for 122 yards and a touchdown.
The 5-foot-9, 205-pounder finished off a rather uneventful first season
in Oakland with two consecutive starts, both of which he surpassed 100
yards on the ground.
Despite Rhodes' effort, however, Russell was unable to exit the '07
campaign with his first career win.
The Raider 'D' managed to hold LaDainian Tomlinson -- this season's NFL
rushing leader -- to just 56 yards on 16 attempts, and it also limited
quarterback Philip Rivers to 13 completions for only 135 yards. However,
costly mistakes ultimately made the difference.
Rookie return man Johnnie Lee Higgins muffed a punt, Rhodes lost a
third-quarter fumble and Russell lost a fumble deep in Raiders territory
that resulted in a Chargers TD. Russell also kicked off his career as a
starting quarterback by throwing an interception on the game's first
pass. Nine plays later, San Diego turned the Igor Olshansky INT into six
points.
Despite the rocky start, head coach Lane Kiffin admitted he saw a
much-improved performance from Russell's four-turnover game in Week 16.
"I think JaMarcus did some really good things today," Kiffin commented.
"His decision-making was night and day from last week."
Certainly, that's an encouraging way to end yet another disappointing
season in Oakland.
The Raiders have now lost nine consecutive games to the Chargers and
have registered a 19-61 record since losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,
48-21, on Jan. 26, 2003 in Super Bowl XXXVII.
With a 4-12 record, Oakland will be at home for the fifth consecutive
postseason.
Well, at least Kerry Collins is headed to the playoffs.
