JaMarcus Russell is a former NFL quarterback. He is considered one of the biggest draft busts of all time. JaMarcus Russell was drafted as a 22-year-old junior out of Louisiana State University. LSU has produced many superstar athletes, including rising Cincinnati Bengals stars Joe Burrow and JaMarr Chase and Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
JaMarcus Russell’s net worth in 2022 is estimated to be $4 million. He draws a public-school teacher’s salary of roughly $35 to 73 thousand a year. He no longer had any endorsement income, and his primary income during his playing career was only his salary as a member of the Oakland Raiders.
Russell struggled to find footing in the NFL and his career ended after only three years of his six-year rookie contract. Russell’s net worth has been negatively impacted since his playing days by ongoing legal issues about financial overcommitment and controlled substances. Join us as we explore the world of JaMarcus Russell’s net worth and salary, and the highlights and lowlights of his post-playing career.
JaMarcus Russell Net Worth
JaMarcus Russell, a former first overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft, was seen as an easy candidate for greatness in the first year of his football career. A fourth-year junior from LSU, Russell’s powerful arm and towering height and arm length made him seem destined to excel in the pocket.
After being drafted, Russell held out for a lucrative rookie contract of $68 million, of which $31.5 million was guaranteed, over six years. Although he was cut after three seasons and $37 million of his contract, Russell filed a grievance with the team arguing that they owed him an additional $9 million. The team settled for $3 million, bringing Russell to the peak of his net worth at $40 million.
Since 2010, his net worth has declined due to difficulty finding comparable post-football positions and, by most estimates, his net worth as of 2022 is $4 million. Affecting Russell’s portfolio includes a police sting that attempted to find him with codeine, or “purple drank,” of which he was found not guilty. This, however, sabotaged his professional football comeback, and Russell has not played since 2010.
JaMarcus Russell Salary
JaMarcus Russell’s current employment is as the quarterbacks coach at his alma mater, Williamson High School. As such, he makes the salary for a Mobile County Public Schools teacher. Prior to joining Mobile County Public Schools in 2018, Russell spent several years living from the proceeds of his playing days through difficult times with legal entanglements. Russell sold his home in Oakland due to foreclosure.
JaMarcus Russell Contract
JaMarcus Russell won his initial contract holdout with the Oakland (now Las Vegas) Raiders, winning one of the largest rookie contracts in NFL history at 6 years and 68 million dollars. This contract became an albatross around his neck, sticking him with expectations he could not possibly fulfill.
Russell struggled in the NFL, and the expected lucrative endorsement deals that come with an athlete's fame and glory never materialized. Feeling unsupported by his team, Russell's production began to suffer, creating friction between him and team owner Mark Davis, who supported his quarterback despite acrimony between Russell and coaches.
JaMarcus Russell Career Earnings
JaMarcus Russell earned $40 million of his $68 million rookie contract before being released by the Oakland Raiders in 2010. Russell’s struggles with money are emblematic of the 2007 NFL draft class, historically seen as a weak draft class for quarterbacks. The 2007 quarterback draft class combined for a 47-92 career W-L record, with only Drew Stanton of the Detroit Lions achieving a career winning record of only 8-5 over a career that lasted 5 years. In terms of staying power, the quarterback class of 2007 was the weakest the NFL had seen since 1996.
JaMarcus Russell Endorsements
During his playing career, Russell had endorsements by UnderArmour and Nike, but his endorsement deals were suspended when he was released by the Oakland Raiders in May 2010 and have not been renewed since. Because Russell is seen by football history as a colossal bust in an underwhelming quarterback draft class, no Jordan- or Montana-style post-career endorsement deals were ever in the offing for him.
JaMarcus Russell Charities
During his playing career, JaMarcus Russell founded a charitable foundation, the Jamarcus (sic) Russell Foundation for Academic and Athletics. Like many athletes’ charitable foundations, the Jamarcus Russell Foundation existed to support children and youth programs for academics and athletics in his hometown area, in his case, Mobile, AL.
Russell’s career struggles and post-career difficulties seem to have ended that foundation. His foundation as of 2022 cannot be found on Charity Navigator, and 2011 is the last year that there is financial information for his foundation in nonprofitfacts.com. The address of Russell’s foundation is a residential home, probably his own home or the home of a family member.
JaMarcus Russell Sponsors
As a retired athlete with a stained reputation, JaMarcus Russell has no active athletic sponsorships. The Lillie B. Williamson High School Lions, the team for which Russell is an active quarterbacks coach, is sponsored by a variety of local businesses. The details of their sponsorships are not publicized on internet sources.
Conclusion
JaMarcus Russell went from NFL bust to school football coach. As such, he has gone from the highs of professional football playing for one of the most prominent teams in the NFL to a modest but successful living as a high school assistant coach, through a valley of legal and financial difficulties during the early to mid 2010s.
