Over the past three years, quarterback JaMarcus Russell has experienced it all with the Raiders. The highs (very few) and the lows (quite a lot).

But one thing has remained constant for Russell in that period of time, and it alone has been the single biggest factor in his disastrous career thus far: his inability to handle criticism and use it to better himself.

Russell has always been a supremely talented athlete and even though he’s played incredibly bad football as of late, it still shows up from time to time. That said, throughout his tenure with Oakland, Russell has displayed a complete unwillingness to develop himself into the premier quarterback the Raiders thought they were getting when they drafted him #1 overall in 2007.

According to multiple sources, his weight has skyrocketed close to 300 pounds several different times, and while he always seems to show up to training camp at a reasonable level, Russell clearly has no desire whatsoever to push himself throughout the off-season to be a better player.

That’s why the draft day move to acquire former Redskins quarterback Jason Campbell was shrewd on the part of Oakland. Unlike the rest of the journeyman QBs accumulated throughout the years by the Raiders, Campbell is a legit starter in his own right, and his presence alone allows the Raiders to cut their losses with Russell and move on from their horrid decision  to draft him in the first place.

There is little doubt that Oakland will be better as a result next fall, with Campbell at the helm, and Russell eating Doritos someplace else. Recognizing that and removing Russell from the equation is the first step on a long road back from the brink, and if they can continue to make smart decisions with regards to their player personnel, the Raiders could be back in a big way very soon.

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