The Long Year of JaMarcus Russell Continues: Russell Popped For Drugs

First, JaMarcus Russell lost his starting job, then he lost his job altogether, and now he's facing a drug charge for possession of codeine syrup.

According to the Mobile Press-Register, Russell was arrested Monday at his home and posted bail around 4 p.m.

For a guy who was the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2007, his future now looks about as bleak as can be.

Following his release by the Raiders in May, no team has shown any real interest in his services, the Raiders are taking Russell to court to demand a large chunk of his bonus money back, and now this.

Russell should've had a chance to hook on with a team once the season started, at the latest, presuming at least one of the 32 NFL teams was going to lose a quarterback to injury and therefore be willing to give the guy another chance.

It's unclear at this point how serious this charge is, if the charge will stick, and what NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell might do about it should it get to that point. The only point of clarity in this whole situation is that Russell is having about as bad a year as a person can have.

Russell has made a series of very poor decisions over the last few years, beginning with his lackadaisical approach to his career, poor conditioning, and a seeming inability to learn from his mistakes.

The results of his poor decision-making now are coming home to roost, and this latest incident may be an indication of a larger problem. It also may be an indication of why the Raiders were so willing to let him go.

If the Raiders' front office was aware of encroaching problems off the field, combined with his on-field failures, it makes his release make a lot more sense.

The saga of JaMarcus Russell is far from over. There is little doubt about that. The question now is whether this story will turn into one of redemption or of tragedy with an ending no one wants to see.