JaMarcus Russell..What's his NFL potential (1 Viewer)

[KoolKat]

He seems to have the size, mobility, and arm to be an NFL QB. I'm watching him right now, and his mechanics seem to be solid. Anyone know what year he is, and have an opinion on his potential at the next level.

 

[wannabee]

He seems to have the size, mobility, and arm to be an NFL QB. I'm watching him right now, and his mechanics seem to be solid. Anyone know what year he is, and have an opinion on his potential at the next level.

this thread had some good discussion on Russell:http://forums.footballguys.com/forum/index...marcus++russell

 

[diesel7982]

If you think he has solid mechanics and mobility, why are you comparing him to Leftwich? Because they look alike?

 

[mrhankey]

Jamarcus is a physical specimen and a hell of an athlete. No so smart though. I'm curious to see him take the Wonderlick. He is alot like Leftwich, slow throwing motion and not too mobile but gets the job done. (I say this cautiously after watching a very poor performance against Florida) His biggest problem is his passing accuracy. He can throw it downfield like no other QB i've seen, but he rarely hits his receivers in stride in their hands. His pass completion percentage is deceptive because of the incredible receivers that LSU has. If you watch any game, a majority of his passes are behind the receiver. Brandon Bowe, Buster Davis and Earley Doucet will also be playing on Sundays. I think in the right system, he can flourish. I think he's coachable, but he will never be a scholar of the game like Peyton Manning (but then again, not many QB's are).

 

[Chaos Commish]

Jamarcus is a physical specimen and a hell of an athlete. No so smart though. I'm curious to see him take the Wonderlick. He is alot like Leftwich, slow throwing motion and not too mobile but gets the job done. (I say this cautiously after watching a very poor performance against Florida) His biggest problem is his passing accuracy. He can throw it downfield like no other QB i've seen, but he rarely hits his receivers in stride in their hands. His pass completion percentage is deceptive because of the incredible receivers that LSU has. If you watch any game, a majority of his passes are behind the receiver. Brandon Bowe, Buster Davis and Earley Doucet will also be playing on Sundays. I think in the right system, he can flourish. I think he's coachable, but he will never be a scholar of the game like Peyton Manning (but then again, not many QB's are).

Thanks for the I've been watching him with a very critical and cautious eye since last season's opener. His game winning pass against ASU that day was incredible, and I've wondered for over a year if it was luck or skill. He is really growing on me as a pro prospect. I think this is a great class of QBs depending on who does and doesn't declare, and Russell is moving up my rankings despite today's performance. His skilllset is a pretty big leap from most others, and I think he shows some pretty impressive accuracy, not always, but often enough. The throw across the field today (caught just out of bounds) was an unbelievable toss. Very few humans can do that. What he did today reminded me of watching Cutler last year. Yep, the team lost. Yep, he made some bad plays. But goodness does he have game.

 

[wannabee]

after seeing that pass that looked like an Ephus (sp?) pitch reenforced my opinion of him. I thought he looked average and the 3rd best college QB in that game

 

[diesel7982]

after seeing that pass that looked like an Ephus (sp?) pitch reenforced my opinion of him. I thought he looked average and the 3rd best college QB in that game

And sadly, still the best NFL QB. Leak is a 2nd day pick, Tebow we're going to have to see on, but my guess is he won't end up a QB in the NFL.

 

[wannabee]

after seeing that pass that looked like an Ephus (sp?) pitch reenforced my opinion of him. I thought he looked average and the 3rd best college QB in that game

And sadly, still the best NFL QB. Leak is a 2nd day pick, Tebow we're going to have to see on, but my guess is he won't end up a QB in the NFL.

i agree, but by default. maybe I am wrong on this one, but he just does not look like a legit NFL qb.

 

[ATC1]

Just got back from the LSU game. Russel is a project, but he is a monster. He can throw the ball like in the 2004 Madden games when the QB can be turned around and throw over their shoulder 60 yards with such ease. His problem is that he doesn't use the arm strength for velocity. He floats the ball way too much that I think SEC defenses are going to be able to catch up and make a play on his balls. Now, Russel had a shoulder injury at the end of last year, and I don't know if that maybe a reason, or how he is feeling, but we will soon see if he can step up his game next week. It does seems like he does grasp the playbook better this season.

I stand by what I said in early September. He does look much better than last year, but he still floats the ball up way too much. He should of had at least 5 INTs today.

 

[diesel7982]

after seeing that pass that looked like an Ephus (sp?) pitch reenforced my opinion of him. I thought he looked average and the 3rd best college QB in that game

And sadly, still the best NFL QB. Leak is a 2nd day pick, Tebow we're going to have to see on, but my guess is he won't end up a QB in the NFL.

i agree, but by default. maybe I am wrong on this one, but he just does not look like a legit NFL qb.

Agreed. Im judging Tebow way too early, but I feel confident that Leak has little-to-no potential as a pro, whereas Russell has the attributes you look for, he just needs lots of work.

 

[wannabee]

after seeing that pass that looked like an Ephus (sp?) pitch reenforced my opinion of him. I thought he looked average and the 3rd best college QB in that game

And sadly, still the best NFL QB. Leak is a 2nd day pick, Tebow we're going to have to see on, but my guess is he won't end up a QB in the NFL.

i agree, but by default. maybe I am wrong on this one, but he just does not look like a legit NFL qb.

Agreed. Im judging Tebow way too early, but I feel confident that Leak has little-to-no potential as a pro, whereas Russell has the attributes you look for, he just needs lots of work.

The way he plays, more than size or anything else, he reminds me of Michael Bishop and Rohan Davey when they were in college. At that time, we all cared more about how far they could throw it instead of accuracy, ability to read defenses, and mechanics. I think we (general fantasy public) are too quick to try to find the next all around QB threat (size, arm strength, run ability) like Culpepper, McNabb, or even Steve Young, that we overlook the simple passing mechanics and the Brees' and Kitna's of the world are passed over and undervalued by fantasy and the NFL. Just one of those things.

 

[gump]

Jamarcus is a physical specimen and a hell of an athlete. No so smart though. I'm curious to see him take the Wonderlick. He is alot like Leftwich, slow throwing motion and not too mobile

Disagree completely. Russell isn't going to run for a lot of yards like Vick, but he knows how to escape the pass rush and get to the open space.

 

[diesel7982]

after seeing that pass that looked like an Ephus (sp?) pitch reenforced my opinion of him. I thought he looked average and the 3rd best college QB in that game

And sadly, still the best NFL QB. Leak is a 2nd day pick, Tebow we're going to have to see on, but my guess is he won't end up a QB in the NFL.

i agree, but by default. maybe I am wrong on this one, but he just does not look like a legit NFL qb.

Agreed. Im judging Tebow way too early, but I feel confident that Leak has little-to-no potential as a pro, whereas Russell has the attributes you look for, he just needs lots of work.

The way he plays, more than size or anything else, he reminds me of Michael Bishop and Rohan Davey when they were in college. At that time, we all cared more about how far they could throw it instead of accuracy, ability to read defenses, and mechanics. I think we (general fantasy public) are too quick to try to find the next all around QB threat (size, arm strength, run ability) like Culpepper, McNabb, or even Steve Young, that we overlook the simple passing mechanics and the Brees' and Kitna's of the world are passed over and undervalued by fantasy and the NFL. Just one of those things.

Again, agreed. Its just as you said, Russell is the best NFL prospect by default when the other two are Leak and Tebow.

 

[mrhankey]

Jamarcus is a physical specimen and a hell of an athlete. No so smart though. I'm curious to see him take the Wonderlick. He is alot like Leftwich, slow throwing motion and not too mobile

Disagree completely. Russell isn't going to run for a lot of yards like Vick, but he knows how to escape the pass rush and get to the open space.

I agree that he is good avoiding the rush, mainly because of his size. My definition of mobility is the scrambling, running QB like the Vicks and pre-injury Culpepper. Russell does not take many sacks (good thing with the O-Line LSU has), but he can only turn his elusiveness into deep passing yards. He has trouble making short passes accurately on the move, and rarely rushes for positive yardage when scrambling. He just doesn't fit the "mobile QB" mold that I think of.The biggest thing that concerned me in the Florida game was how many times LSU had 3rd and 1 or 4th and 1, Jamarcus checks off the play and they hand off up the middle for -1. A guy with Jamarcus' size should be able to plow up the middle and get those yards. Heck...Tebow did it!!!!

 

[ATC1]

Jamarcus is a physical specimen and a hell of an athlete. No so smart though. I'm curious to see him take the Wonderlick. He is alot like Leftwich, slow throwing motion and not too mobile

Disagree completely. Russell isn't going to run for a lot of yards like Vick, but he knows how to escape the pass rush and get to the open space.

I agree that he is good avoiding the rush, mainly because of his size. My definition of mobility is the scrambling, running QB like the Vicks and pre-injury Culpepper. Russell does not take many sacks (good thing with the O-Line LSU has), but he can only turn his elusiveness into deep passing yards. He has trouble making short passes accurately on the move, and rarely rushes for positive yardage when scrambling. He just doesn't fit the "mobile QB" mold that I think of.The biggest thing that concerned me in the Florida game was how many times LSU had 3rd and 1 or 4th and 1, Jamarcus checks off the play and they hand off up the middle for -1. A guy with Jamarcus' size should be able to plow up the middle and get those yards. Heck...Tebow did it!!!!

Agreed, and Alley is not running like he used to at all. That ACL tear really messed with his mind.

 

[ellisonb11]

i was at the FLA-LSU game, and im a florida fan, but i gotta say i think Russel will be a stud. He is ALWAYS calm and cool in the pocket, and is soo hard to get down.

Russel can run, unlike leftwich, also, russel gets rid of the ball much quicker than leftwich, i think hes got a long future in the NFL

 

[FreeBaGeL]

Russell has an arm like I've never, ever seen before. With that cannon of an arm if he had even mediocre talent/touch he should be throwing for 40 TDs.

He'll get drafted highly based on his tremendous measurables, but unless he's drafted into an offense like the one Culpepper was in Minnesota where he doesn't have to think and doesn't have to put touch on the ball he won't do much. He guns the ball in to players a few yards away, he floats the ball downfield when he actually SHOULD gun it in and gets balls picked off, he turns it over a ton, he's fairly inaccurate (it's amazing how many 7 yard ins he puts high and behind the WRs). I'm not nearly as high on Russell as a pro prospect as most.

 

[ATC1]

Russell has an arm like I've never, ever seen before. With that cannon of an arm if he had even mediocre talent/touch he should be throwing for 40 TDs.He'll get drafted highly based on his tremendous measurables, but unless he's drafted into an offense like the one Culpepper was in Minnesota where he doesn't have to think and doesn't have to put touch on the ball he won't do much. He guns the ball in to players a few yards away, he floats the ball downfield when he actually SHOULD gun it in and gets balls picked off, he turns it over a ton, he's fairly inaccurate (it's amazing how many 7 yard ins he puts high and behind the WRs). I'm not nearly as high on Russell as a pro prospect as most.

He would be interesting in an OAK uniform this season. He would have to be around in the 2nd round, OAK would have to pass up Quinn, and Moss would have to return next season.

 

[Sigmund Bloom]

As many have been getting at - Russell has clearly has NFL tools. His arm strength is off the charts good, he's got ideal size, and he's got a good track record of success when he has to put the team on his shoulders (at least going into this year). The "but" is that he's still evolving as a QB. He should be one of the first 5-7 QBs picked if he comes out next year.

 

[KoolKat]

As many have been getting at - Russell has clearly has NFL tools. His arm strength is off the charts good, he's got ideal size, and he's got a good track record of success when he has to put the team on his shoulders (at least going into this year). The "but" is that he's still evolving as a QB. He should be one of the first 5-7 QBs picked if he comes out next year.

It's crazy how much this guys stock has risen since this post.

 

[massraider]

As many have been getting at - Russell has clearly has NFL tools. His arm strength is off the charts good, he's got ideal size, and he's got a good track record of success when he has to put the team on his shoulders (at least going into this year). The "but" is that he's still evolving as a QB. He should be one of the first 5-7 QBs picked if he comes out next year.

It's crazy how much this guys stock has risen since this post.

It's crazy how much his game improved from his sophomore to his junior year. And a quick search will reveal posts around the same time as the one above, where people were touting him as a top 10 pick.

 

[Bracie Smathers]

Yesterday, Al Davis described Russell as being similar to John Elway.Of course, Davis is currently drooling applesauce.... so take the comment for what it's worth.

As a Browns fan I say don't listen to Wierd Al. Give him a bottle of Levitra and a Raiderette till after the draft and let JaMarcus fall to the Brownies. It'll take Russell a good three years to get up to speed with his potential but I say he's the real deal and best QB prospect I've ever seen. My opinion is based off of tape watching him escape pressure and making big plays with his arm and legs. I also like his quiet leadership and feel he could be extra special by the time he hangs them up.Weird Al is 77 years old and needs the assistence of a walker and an aide to lumber around the Raider HQ. Davis witnessed the passing of Lamar Hunt recently before Mr. Hunt had a chance to win another Super Bowl. I'm not sure Al doesn't has three bad years let alone good years left and I'm quite certain he'd like another crack at hoisting a Lombardi before he's teets up. If he drafts Russell I don't think he'll ever see the JaMarcus Russell pick come to fruition. Taking a not-ready-for-prime-time QB like Russell also doesn't mesh well with the elderly Randy Moss who will more than likely be out of the league or welllllll on the downside of his career by the time Russell is hitting his groove. If the Raiders take a QB then Brady Quinn makes the most sense. Quinn is a better fit for the WC style offense the Raiders coaching is familiar with and he's far more NFL ready than Russell on many areas of his game. Quinn's ceiling isn't as high but I think he'll be a solid NFL QB in his own right. I'd be happy if the Browns end up with Brady Quinn but I much prefer JaMarcus Russell but that is my humble opinion.