Perhaps the most painful part of letting go of JaMarcus Russell for Al Davis was admitting that Lane Kiffin was right.
Kiffin never wanted Russell; he reportedly hoped to take Calvin Johnson first overall and target Trent Edwards as a quarterback in the third round.
Our pal Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times caught up with Kiffin this week to get his thoughts on Russell, and Kiffin surprisingly didn’t gloat.
“We had a difference of opinion, myself and Mr. Davis,” Kiffin said. “But, you know, like I’ve always said, ‘Everybody has a boss,’ and he was the boss. I truly wish it would have worked out different for JaMarcus because he’s a great kid. But this could be the best thing for him.”
Okay, maybe that was a little bit of restrained gloating.
We do agree with Kiffin that any shot Russell has at redemption had to happen away from Oakland.
We don’t absolve Russell from his responsibility. He blew it. But even if he acted like a professional from day one, we agree with what Jerry McDonald wrote this week: Russell also never really stood a chance.