JaMarcus Russell looked like he had a wide open door to return to the NFL, however that door began to slightly close as one team has taken themselves out of the hunt to give Russell the comeback he has been waiting for. While Russell has been attempting to erase the word "bust" from being associated with his name, the list of teams looking for his services is growing smaller. It was reported earlier that the Arizona Cardinals were showing interest in bringing in Russell to enter the quarterback race, but the team is now claiming to have zero interest in the quarterback, leaving the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are possibly the only other option.
The Cardinals have signed Carson Palmer to be their No.1 quarterback for the 2013 season, but they are leaving the door open for a competition for the backup spot. With Drew Stanton and Ryan Lindley as the possible options for the backup role, the team's interest in Russell made sense. Russell has been working heavily on making a legitimate comeback into the league, losing over 25 pounds and working with quarterback coaches to get back into football shape.
Russell was a former No.1 pick by the Raiders in 2007, but after just three years with the team, he was released. He has yet to see a football field since. He began to gain a reputation as being lazy and was gaining weight, no longer allowing him to be competitive amongst other quarterback options. In his short NFL career, Russell threw for 4,083 yards, 18 touchdowns and 23 interceptions with a 52.1 completion percentage.
There are still a few teams that are legitimate options for Russell to complete his comeback. The Chicago Bears have shown interest in quarterback. They lost backup Jason Campbell to free agency and have been in search of someone to sit behind Jay Cutler. They could easily sign Russell to a short-term, low cost contract just to see if he is even a valid option.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are also in the market for another quarterback to add to the roster. Tampa re-signed backup Dan Orlovsky, but he is not an option to compete with current starter Josh Freeman. The Bucs had looked at everyone from Chase Daniels to Matt Cassel as possible options, but no one panned out. Tampa Bay is reportedly considering picking up a quarterback mid-way through the draft, but if they are impressed with Russell, he could be the best option the team has.
