JaMarcus Russell and That Purple Drank

JaMarcus Russell.....From the no. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft to out of the league and getting arrested with "Purple Drank," in three short years.

(I know the above video isn't really related, but every time I hear "Purple Drank" I think of it. Plus it's funny.)

Russell's career arc begs a historic question. Is JaMarcus Russell the biggest bust in NFL history? (That sound you hear is Ryan Leaf rushing to his phone to call me and scream "YES, YES, A Thousand Times YES!!)

Ryan Leaf is the current owner of the Biggest Bust Championship Belt, and probably deservedly so. Let's take a look at his Bust Resume:

- 2nd overall pick in the 1998 Draft.

- The Chargers gave the Cardinals two first round picks, a second rounder, and four-time Pro Bowl running back Eric Metcalf to move up one spot to select Leaf.

- Leaf's career stat highlights....48.4% completion rate, 3,666 yards, 14 TD's, 36 Int's, all while being sacked 65 times including 31 times in the year 2000.

- Who were some of the notable players taken after Leaf in this draft, which is very important in determining bust status? It shows who the team could have had instead. In this case the standouts are: Charles Woodson (1st Round, 4th pick), Fred Taylor (1st Round, 9th pick), Randy Moss (1st Round, 21st pick), Flozell Adams (2nd Round, 38th overall pick), Brian Griese (3rd Round, 91st overall pick), Hines Ward (3rd Round, 92nd overall pick), QB Matt Hasselbeck (6th Round, 187th overall pick). Oh, and Jeff Saturday, Brian Finneran, and London Fletcher were undrafted and came into the league that same year.

- The most important factor in Ryan Leaf's bust status is Peyton Manning. In the build up to the draft in 1998 the big question who would be taken first, Manning or Leaf? Manning or Leaf, Manning or Leaf? That's all you heard leading up to this draft. Well, Manning was taken first, resurrected a franchise, played in two Super Bowls, winning one, is a lock first-ballot Hall of Famer, and is on the short list of the greatest quarterbacks to ever look at a football. Yup, that's who was taken one pick ahead of Leaf.

Russel's looks a little like this....

- 1st overall pick in the 2007 draft.

- Career stats, so far after three years in the league, 4,083 passing yards, 52.1% completion rate, 18 TD's, 23 Int's, and sacked 70 times. Comparable to Leaf's.

- Players taken after Russell in that draft? How about Adrian Peterson, Darrelle Revis, Jon Beason, all in the first round. Kevin Kolb, Sidney Rice, and Steve Smith of the Giants in Round 2. The Raiders themselves took Zach Miller and Michael Bush in later rounds.

Russell was also paid a ton more money than Leaf. Russell's signing bonus, $32 million, was more than Leaf's entire contract, $31 million. Russell is probably not going to get another job in the NFL after this arrest. Leaf at least had the decency to wait until he was out of the league seven years before he got arrested for a narcotics related offense.

I think Leaf still retains the title, because of the constant comparisons to Manning. Russell's downfall was fast, but recent, so it is still fresh in our minds. If Russell doesn't get back into the NFL that will go a long way to him passing Leaf.

There is good news for Russell though. If he can't make it into the NFL, he can still play football. The Hamilton Tigercats of the Canadian Football League own his CFL rights. I don't know anything about this team except that they are nicknamed the Ti-Cats and Hamilton is suburb of Toronto that is always mentioned in the "Cities that should have an NHL team" conversation. So, JaMarcus has that going for him.