Quick! We need more buildup to the NFL Draft! The top prospects do not have enough pressure on them. Will they bust or become perennial Pro Bowlers? Matt Sussman and Tuffy examine both sides of each coin, writing articles from the year 2011 "looking back" on the top 2007 draft picks. Just another reason to own a flux capacitor.

JaMarcus Russell The Star

OAKLAND — The four years after the Oakland Raiders last made the Super Bowl, they won a combined 15 games while losing 49. The next four-year span, through which quarterback JaMarcus Russell played in an integral role, the Raiders improved to 27-37.

Still not the kind of plundering made famous by the silver and black. But the ship appears to be untying itself from the dock.

But neither of the last two seasons were anchored to mediocrity. In 2009 the Raiders finally broke even with an 8-8 record. Last year, their successful 9-7 campaign earned them a Wild Card playoff berth, upsetting Miami in the first round before falling to Vince Young and the Tennessee Titans. Russell played a large part in that, as he earned his first Pro Bowl appearance.

This year, Russell is looking to push even deeper into the AFC playoffs with a conference championship appearance — or perhaps even further than that.

It's hard to believe now, but there actually was doubt about Russell's emergence into the NFL. The science of quarterbacks going in the first few picks is rather hit or miss. Just ask Peyton Manning and Tim Couch. But the Raiders did one thing right in the 2007 season: They gave him a clipboard. Sacrificial lamb Andrew Walter kept the team warm during Russell's rookie year as the team finished 4-12.

Walter also started the first two games of 2008, going 1-1, before Russell was finally sworn in as starting quarterback. That was also the year, conveniently, that the Raiders used their third overall pick to snag fellow SEC alum Darren McFadden to line up behind him.

The Russell/McFadden combo, coupled with a bolstered offensive line and a corps of talented wide receivers, has slowly built the once-paltry Raiders' offense into a chain-moving force. As a unit, they allowed 22 sacks — 5th lowest in the league last year. While McFadden was a 1,000-yard rusher last year, Russell has also thrown 10 touchdowns to his super-back, three that went longer than 50 yards.

Questions still linger regarding Russell's decision making, which has led to costly turnovers in the past, notably the playoff game against Tennessee. He can make plays, but is still not yet the type of crafty veteran who knows when to take the sack, rather than dart past the line of scrimmage or throw it downfield.

Beyond that, Russell is a proven playmaker. Last season he chucked 26 touchdowns (despite 15 interceptions) and racked up 3,700 yards last year, all while completing 63 percent of his passes. That was enough to earn him a trip to his first Pro Bowl.

Heading into the 2011 season, Russell and McFadden aim to give the Raiders their first taste of an AFC Championship in nine years. If Russell's recent growth as a player and person is any indication, the Raiders have to be the heralded favorite in the AFC West.

Now read Tuffy's take on JaMarcus Russell being a bust.