Let's talk about BUSTS

Yesterday, news leaked that the Oakland Raiders plan to cut JaMarcus Russell. Russell, as you all know, was the #1 overall draft pick in 2007 from LSU. Physically, Russell was an animal coming out of college. Standing 6'6", tipping the scales at 260lbs, and having a cannon for an arm. Russell never did see any significant improvement in his game. He also always managed to show up at training camp 20lbs heavier than he had the previous season, tipping the scales at just under 300lbs at the Raiders most recent mini-camp.

Russell is an obvious bust, I don't think there's any room for debate on that. But my question is: Is JaMarcus Russell the biggest bust in NFL history? Only one man comes to mind that can put up a fight for this title: Ryan Leaf. Let's take a trip down memory lane for those that don't remember the details on the Ryan Leaf story (or should I call it a tragedy?)...

Leaf was a standout at Washington State, and in 1997 was named the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year, as well as a Heisman Trophy finalist. In the draft that following spring, Leaf and Peyton Manning were considered the top 2 players. Many actually believed that Leaf would be better than Manning. The San Diego Chargers held the #3 pick in the draft, and traded with Arizona who had the #2, to ensure that they would get 1 of the 2 coveted quarterbacks. San Diego gave up two 1st round picks, a 2nd round pick, and a 3-time Pro Bowler to move into the #2 slot. Manning obviously went #1 to Indianapolis, and the Chargers took Leaf without hesitation and knew they'd found their franchise QB of the future.

Leaf lasted 3 seasons. Russell just finished his 3rd season. So now let's make the comparisons...

Leaf

Games: 25

Touchdowns: 14

Incerceptions: 36

Yards: 3,666

Completion percentage: 48.4

QB Rating: 50.0

Salary: 4 years/$31.25 million, with $11.25 million guaranteed. This was at the time the biggest guaranteed signing bonus ever for a rookie.

Russell

Games: 31

Touchdowns: 18

Interceptions: 23

Yards: 4,083

Completion percentage: 52.1

QB Rating: 65.2

Salary: 6 years/$68 million, with $31.5 million guaranteed. It is also worth noting that Russell didn't agree to a contract until up into September, missing the entire offseason training camp.

So, who wins?

Russell had the better numbers. he was statistically better than Leaf in every catagory. However, he also made a LOT more money than Leaf did. So if you want to look at a ratio of money earned vs. performance, this one might be too close to call.

We will let the readers decide. Leave a comment or head over to the message board.