The Raiders tried to help Russell while he was still with the team.
The Oakland Raiders issued a brief statement Wednesday regarding the arrest of JaMarcus Russell and revealed that they offered help while he was still with the team.
“We did all that we could to intervene and assist with a myriad of issues with JaMarcus Russell,” the statement began. “NFL policy restricts our ability to comment publicly at this time. Therefore, those in the media who declare what the Raiders knew or should have known or what the Raiders did or should have done, are reckless, irresponsible and offensive and do a disservice to all concerned, including the public.”
The Raiders appear to be alluding to rumors that Russell’s liquid codeine abuse had been known for some time.
To their credit, it would appear that not everybody did know about his substance abuse issues.
“He hasn’t done anything like that in front of me so I can’t sit here and say yay or nay as far as what goes on in his personal life,” Raiders defensive end Jay Richardson told me on Tuesday.
The team released the No. 1 overall pick of the 2007 NFL Draft on May 6.