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Lack of desire brings end to JaMarcus Russell’s Raiders career: This is an utterly devastating critique of the JaMarcus Russell era in Oakland.  It’s worth reading, even if you don’t follow football.

I always assumed the problem with Russell was work ethic, but this guy did some research and confirmed it.  It’s a sickening tale confirming everything you fear about entitled young athletes who suddenly come into a lot of money.

There’s almost too much to quote here, but this three paragraph stretch was enough to make me nauseous, both as a fan of the Raiders, and just as a fan of a productive society and pulling your own weight in general.

Said one league source with first-hand knowledge of Russell’s tenure in Oakland: "He just refused to work at it. That sums up the whole thing. He was in love with the idea of being a wealthy young guy, but he has no drive to be a great quarterback. He’s a young guy who came into a lot of money and notoriety by virtue of being the No. 1 pick. But in that situation, unless you have that special motivation, what’s the point of working hard? If you already have the money, the only thing that keeps you improving is the work ethic.

Leagues sources said from start to finish in Oakland, the light never remotely started to come on for Russell as a Raider. His maturity level never ticked upward in a hopeful fashion, and his work habits (or lack thereof) never changed. He wore out something of a path between Oakland and Las Vegas (at least in terms of the flight path), but he flat out refused to wear out much of anything on the practice field or in the weight room. Russell was in love with the lifestyle of being an NFL player, but he was never in love with the game or what it takes to play it.

When I asked a league source what Russell struggled with the most in Oakland, what part of his game, the answer was devastating: "Everything. Every aspect of the position,” the source said. "If you had a checklist of everything you want your quarterback to do, he chose not to do it. He chose not to study, not to work out, not to be communicative with teammates, not to exhibit leadership, not to get himself into shape.

When everything is over, this is a guy the Raiders will have paid an average of $14 million a year.

In my mind, there is no question that Russell is the biggest draft bust in NFL history, eclipsing even Ryan Leaf by a long shot.