Former Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell has announced that he wants to return to the NFL.
The top pick from the 2007 Draft has not played in the league since 2009, and has been without a team since being released by the Raiders in May 2010.
The 27-year-old told Yahoo! Sports: "The last few years, the things going through my life, football is my job and it is how it feeds my family. People are always saying that I'm a bust. I want show them I'm not. I'm committed to this now.
"It feels funny not to go through a training camp, that's just what I'm used to. It's going to feel good to go back out there again. I will make this happen."
Russell, who has gained weight since last playing in the NFL, has been working with former players including Jerry Garcia and Olympic athlete Ato Boldon to improve his fitness, claiming to have dropped from 320lb to 308lb recently.
The quarterback was arrested in 2010 for being in possession of codeine syrup without a prescription.
His most recent try-outs with NFL teams were in 2010.
Sian Cowper
