Can JaMarcus Russell Find Success? A Statistical Comparison Shows the Truth

At this moment in time there is more controversy surrounding JaMarcus Russell than any other player wearing Silver & Black. Some of it is harsh criticism; some of it is blind devotion. Those that criticize him are pointing to every aspect of his life. His game, his behavior, and spending habits. Those that are blindly supporting him are primarily using his unrealized physical potential and the color of his skin to make their case. I wrote an article called, "JaMarcus Russell: A Coach's perspective" that focused on his mechanics and nothing more. I was fair and objective in my assessment and never mentioned his race, work ethic or attitude, yet I was still branded a racist by his blind supporters. Here's a novel idea! Let's compare him to other players that have come before him and were just as highly touted. Not just black quarterbacks, not just first overall picks, but quarterbacks that were billed as their team's savior coming out of college just like Russell was. This article will not use anything but statistics to relate Russell's success or failure to that of other players who came into the league under similar circumstances. If you infer anything else, it's because you're looking for a fight. This article is NOT about race; it's about production. Nothing more. I will be using three so-called "busts" and three players that went on to success. So...how does Russell stack up against other "franchise" picks?Begin Slideshow

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