Will JaMarcus Russell Ever Play in the NFL?

JaMarcus Russell is still holding out—to his own detriment.

Russell has the perfect chance to revive a struggling Oakland Raiders franchise. What's more, Raiders owner Al Davis loves minorities, and will pay the kid everything he's worth

As it stands, though, JaMarcus has only managed to prove two things by playing the villain in his contract negotiations: He cares about money more than football, and he wasn't ready to come out of LSU in the first place.

Russell doesn’t deserve the jumbo contract he's asking for. He's not Reggie Bush or Vince Young—both of whom, by the way, signed early and played in every preseason game as rookies.

Reggie took the Saints to the NFC Championship Game; Young earned NFL Rookie of the Year honors. JaMarcus, on the other hand, hasn’t even made a proposal to help the Raiders understand where he's coming from...though he has been partying like a rock star since becoming the first pick in the 2007 Draft.

The fact of the matter is that Russell wasn't the best QB at the predraft combines—and that he won’t be the best rookie QB, even if he plays. If he doesn't, he'll be the first ever No. 1 pick to never suit up in the NFL.

If nothing else, Russell's holdout is turning heads in the African American community, where we've learned that football has become more about money than playing the game.

Larry Johnson came into the league as the best running back in his draft—and yet he got a small contract. Since then, he's made history. Russell, on the other hand wasn't even the best in his draft class, and only came out because the class was so weak.

If the holdout continues, Daunte Culpepper may well win the hearts of Oakland fans. Even if JaMarcus does ultimately sign, he might hold more value as trade bait than as a starting QB.

If JaMarcus were smart, he'd fire both his PR man and his agent—because they're killing his value before he's even taken snap. Some day, we may be wondering whatever happened to that No. 1 pick who never played a down in the NFL.