Plenty of excuses can be made for the Raiders' ineptitude on offense. The receivers are too young. The offensive line is not good enough. The running game has been slow to develop. Need a few more? Ask QB JaMarcus Russell. The only area in which he has excelled since arriving in Oakland has been in making excuses.

Al Davis knew what he was getting when he made Russell the first overall pick in the 2007 NFL draft. Ever the believer in a powerful arm and a vertical passing game, Davis overlooked all the questions about Russell's lazy work habits and lack of passion when he decided to make the former LSU star the future of the Oakland franchise. Davis justified his decision by recalling all the renegades that won Super Bowls for him in the past.

What Davis grossly overlooked is the way money has changed the game and how truly important leadership ability is at the QB position. Russell was extremely lazy before he was guaranteed $32 million and there is little anyone can do to motivate him now. He has no idea what it means to prepare. He does not have enough pride to study his craft. He has a $100 million arm and a 25 cent work ethic, and benching him will not change his approach.

In an age when first-round quarterbacks are proving they can make an instant impact, Russell has shamed the Raiders' organization from the day he arrived. His performance this season has been nothing short of pathetic, and is not only embarrassing to his team, but to the National Football League and the product it seeks to deliver to its fans — the people he continues to rob.

Jeff Garcia could have had this team atop the division. The cannon-armed Russell, however, is painful to watch, knowing how much better he could and should be, and how much he has handcuffed the Raiders' organization with his lackadaisical, faint-hearted, selfish approach.

He takes far too long to scan the field and process decisions. He has established no rhythm with his receivers and consistently throws way off the mark, making them work hard for the ball and brake in their routes to catch balls thrown an arm length behind them. He continually is caught off guard by pressure, and appearing exceedingly heavy, his mobility is marginal at best. He plays with little emotion.

In the four most critical traits that PFW seeks in quarterbacks — accuracy, intelligence, intangibles and toughness — Russell grades poorly across the board. When history finishes writing itself, he could set the new standard for the prototypical bust, replacing Ryan Leaf.

• It didn't help that the Ravens' offensive line was stressed after OLT Jared Gaither left the game on a stretcher, forcing ORT Michael Oher to the left side and Marshall Yanda to enter the game on the right side, but it did not matter who was in the lineup. Patriots DE Ty Warren might have registered only two tackles in the stat box, but he consistently showed up in the Ravens' backfield, collapsed the pocket and made a huge stop late in the fourth quarter on a 3rd-and-1 situation when he ripped right past Yanda and hit Ray Rice in the backfield. Shame on Ravens offensive coordinator Cam Cameron for running right at Warren again on the 4th-and-1, thinking he might get a different result with Willis McGahee.

• Some of the most violent collisions in the NFL occur on kickoff coverage, especially as creative coordinators have sought to add bigger bodies onto the unit, as the Giants have done. DE Dave Tollefson set the tone for the Giants when he blew up a two-man wall right in front of Jamaal Charles on the opening kickoff, sending Chiefs DL Wallace Gilberry falling straight backward like a domino, as if he had been knocked cold. Charles, who had struggled holding on to the ball in college at Texas, proceeded to cough up the ball after being tackled and give the Giants great field position to start the game. The Patriots opened up the Ravens contest the same way, as LB Eric Alexander stripped Chris Carr on the opening kickoff, as the Ravens' special-teams units continue to struggle this season.

• After all the buzz about how well Jets QB Mark Sanchez played through his first three games, Saints defensive Gregg Williams unleashed an aggressive array of pressure on the Jets' rookie passer, sometimes overloading multiple gaps by bringing eight defenders at a time. Sanchez really struggled to handle it, as his eyes began dropping more quickly, he held on to the ball longer and forced it into coverage too much, as there were fewer open receivers and Saints FS Darren Sharper was preying on his floaters from the back end.

• Lions DT Landon Cohen caught some attention when he threw up an eye-opening, team-best 50 reps in the 225-pound bench press in the Lions' conditioning test prior to the season. The second-year pro out of Ohio received his first career start against the Bears and made his presence felt, showing great power in his punch. On one play late in the third quarter, Cohen anticipated the snap, moved with the ball and jacked Bears C Olin Kreutz off the ground and planted him five yards deep in the backfield. The 2008 seventh-round pick came on last season and has shown some big-time flashes that indicate he could turn out to be another great late-round gem to emerge.

• Broncos RB Correll Buckhalter, in his ninth season out of Nebraska, is proving he still has a lot of spring in his legs past the age of 30 and has given the Broncos a very formidable 1-2 punch with Knowshon Moreno, still hitting the hole very quickly. Buckhalter did leave Sunday's game on crutches with an ankle injury, but X-rays were reportedly negative. Not having Buckhalter, who could be held out of action next week, could limit the Broncos' rushing attack, as neither Peyton Hillis nor LaMont Jordan provides the same big-play capabilities or complementary change of pace to Moreno.

• After squeaking by Dallas with another win spurred by the aggressive playcalling of Broncos' defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and the steady game management of QB Kyle Orton, the most surprising undefeated squad at the quarter mark of the season could prove it is a legitimate contender with a win this week. Josh McDaniels should not be underestimated when he faces his former boss, having great familiarity with the personnel in New England, and likely having begun preparing for this game long ago, especially with the blueprints Mike Shanahan left on tape regarding how to keep the Pats' defense off-guard with play-action and bootlegs that root out of the same formations and keep Belichick guessing. The game should be a great chess match.

• Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris called out DE Gaines Adams publicly, and Adams responded against the Redskins, following up a tackle to start the game by defeating Chris Samuels for a sack. He then recovered a fumble after Jimmy Wilkerson jarred the ball out of Jason Campbell's hands. Collectively, the Bucs' defense played better and found a way to create the turnovers that had been lacking this season, with Aqib Talib picking off three Jason Campbell passes.

• If the Lions want to protect the mighty investment they made in QB Matthew Stafford, they better find a way to upgrade ORG Stephen Peterman, who was a swinging gate against the Bears' defensive line much of the day and who long has been a liability in pass protection.

• When it comes to prototypical pass rushers, evaluators generally prefer great length, with DeMarcus Ware setting the standard today. However, offensive linemen increasingly seem to be the most troubled by short pass rushers with natural leverage and power, such as Dwight Freeney, James Harrison, Elvis Dumervil and Robert Mathis. Mathis abused Seahawks OLT Brandon Frye. Harrison was a force against the Chargers. Freeney might be the league's best. And Dumervil is on pace for what would be an NFL-record 32 sacks, with eight already.

• Shutting out the Rams to the tune of 35-0 was more the result of the Rams' offensive struggles and the stingy play of the 49ers' defense — with defensive TDs scored by Patrick Willis and Ray McDonald, along with the fumble Scott McKillop recovered in the endzone on special teams — than it was with the Niners' offense churning. The Niners have used a similar approach to the Broncos to beat every team in their division in the NFC West — they have relied on a pressure defense first and foremost, and 49ers defensive coordinator Greg Manusky and his former boss Mike Nolan (in Denver) are running very similar movement 3-4 fronts, with a game-managing quarterback and an emphasis on grinding out the clock with a power running game. ILB Takeo Spikes has been an underrated cog in San Francisco's defense, supplying emotional leadership and professionalism that has helped set the tone for the unit. Mike Singletary's linebackers are beginning to fit his image and are playing very inspired football.

• There were some questions about how the Giants' defense was going to fare after losing defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, but with Bill Sheridan at the controls, the Giants' defense has remained as aggressive as ever and has given up less yardage than any other defense through the first four games, keyed by the continued strong play of the league's deepest defensive line and a fast-flowing, physical group of linebackers.

PFW has launched its brand-new NFL Draft Newsletter series, with the first issue now ready for mailing. Produced by PFW's player personnel department under the direction of Nolan Nawrocki, the series consists of four information-packed issues. For more info or to subscribe — click here for PDF e-pub or here for print format.