The Raiders are hopeful that QB Jamarcus Russell is on the verge of a breakout season, especially since they added wide receivers Darrius Heyward-bey and Louis Murphy to an offense that already features three quality running backs.
"It takes time, especially at the quarterback position ...," Raiders middle linebacker Kirk Morrison said. "It takes
a couple years. ... For JaMarcus going into his third year, the game is going to slow down for him a lot, and he's going to have a successful year."
Russell completed only 53.8 percent of his passes, was sacked 31 times and fumbled 12 times last season. He balanced that with 13 touchdown passes against only eight interceptions and a strong showing his final two games.
Cable has made expediting Russell's development a primary objective this season.
He made the well-regarded Paul Hackett the quarterbacks coach, signed veteran Jeff Garcia as the backup and challenged Russell to work harder than ever.
