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Las Vegas Raiders April Fools: 5 worst draft picks in history

By Khaled Abdallah

OAKLAND, CA - JANUARY 03: JaMarcus Russell #2 of the Oakland Raiders walks off the field against the Baltimore Ravens during an NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on January 3, 2010 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - JANUARY 03: JaMarcus Russell #2 of the Oakland Raiders walks off the field against the Baltimore Ravens during an NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on January 3, 2010 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images) /
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OAKLAND, CA – SEPTEMBER 10: Rolando McClain #55 of the Oakland Raiders reacts after he tackled Curtis Brinkley #36 of the San Diego Chargers during their season opener at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on September 10, 2012 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA – SEPTEMBER 10: Rolando McClain #55 of the Oakland Raiders reacts after he tackled Curtis Brinkley #36 of the San Diego Chargers during their season opener at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on September 10, 2012 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

3. Rolando McClain, LB, 8th overall in 2010

Rolando McClain was supposed to be the next in a long list of great Raiders linebackers but due to his inability to stay out of trouble he is simply a footnote in team history. McClain had an incredible career at the University of Alabama and came to Oakland after winning the Butkus and Lambert Awards, being named a Unanimous All-American, and winning a BCS National Championship.

Things started well for McClain as he started 29 games his first two seasons, recording 5.5 sacks, 136 tackles, and 14 tackles for loss. In his third season however the cracks began to show as he was benched for a rookie and only started nine games. Life began to unravel for McClain off the field as well as he had his first run-in with the law in a bizarre incident involving a firearm. He was reportedly kicked out of practice for several incidents and it was clear that patience with him was running thin among Raiders brass.

McClain was eventually released by the Raiders ahead of the 2013 season and didn’t play another down for the Silver and Black. He was retired during the 2013 season but resurrected his career in 2014 with the Dallas Cowboys. He appeared to have things back on track but substance abuse issues continued to take their toll on him and he was suspended indefinitely by the NFL and that was the end of his career.

The former Alabama man had the talent to be a great linebacker but he kept getting in his own way and similar to many other bright young NFL players, battled substance abuse issues that ruined his career.

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