Jason Campbell: The Best Deal of the Offseason
Teams in the National Football League have become more heavily pass-reliant, and in turn quarterback numbers have skyrocketed. Last season, there were 12 quarterbacks to have a completion rate of around 66 percent, 10 to throw for at least 4,000 yards, and 12 with 25 or more touchdown passes.
By these standards, Jason Campbell is relatively unimpressive. The fifth year quarterback started in all 16 games for the Washington Redskins and had a career year across the board. He completed 64.5 percent of his pass attempts en route to 3,618 passing yards and 20 touchdown passes.
By the standards of Campbell’s new team, the Oakland Raiders, his performance is a gift from the heavens. The Raiders have not had a quarterback with a passing percentage of higher than 60 percent since Rich Gannon’s 67.6 percent season in 2002. Oakland has not had a quarterback with more than 20 touchdowns since Kerry Collins threw 25 in 2005.
Perhaps most indicative of Oakland’s dire passing situation, former Raiders quarterback Jamarcus Russell has a career total of yardage that is just around 500 yards more than Campbell’s 2009 totals.
Under Russell, the Raiders ranked 29 or lower in passing offence for each of the last four seasons. Campbell’s proven abilities represent a huge shift for the struggling franchise at perhaps the most crucial individual offensive position.
According to tight end Zach Miller, Oakland’s top receiver last season: "[Campbell’s] brought stability, and leadership, and professionalism."
The benefits of the acquisition of Campbell are exponentially magnified given his cost to the Raiders. The 28-year-old was traded to Oakland for a fourth-round pick. This is surprising given Campbell’s fairly successful tenure with Washington, his youth and subsequent growth possibility, and the desperation with which Oakland was searching for a replacement quarterback.
In fact, Campbell’s transfer is perhaps the least expensive transfer of a starting quarterback in recent memory. Although Byron Leftwich was shipped from Tampa Bay to Pittsburgh this spring for a seventh-round pick, he is only a temporary starter during Ben Roethlisberger’s suspension. Shaun Hill was similarly acquired by the Detroit Lions from the San Francisco 49ers, but will have no chance starting games unless Detroit’s No. 1 Matthew Stafford is injured.
Campbell was made expendable in Washington with the signing of veteran star Donovan McNabb, but to obtain the Auburn alum for a mere fourth-round pick is still dazzling. Like all things, Campbell does have his downfalls. He has been known to dump the ball off too quickly, evident in his career average of 6.63 yards per attempt. Campbell has also taken a lot of sacks, which means he may not have the best pocket vision.
Regardless, Campbell’s positives by far outweigh the negatives for the Raiders. Campbell’s strong arm and accuracy will be a welcome departure from Russell’s meaningless downfield overthrowing. Additionally, Campbell is a composed, yet fierce competitor. Thus he will not display any behavioural issues like Russell’s constant weight gain and lack of fitness.
Campbell, who has been training this offseason with fellow Mississippian Brett Favre, should make a huge impact for the Raiders. In addition to helping the offence snap out of its stagnant state, Campbell will alleviate a tremendous amount of pressure off the defence. Oakland’s defence has struggled from overexertion due to the erratic performance of Russell.
Campbell should be able to keep the offence on the field longer which will allow the defence to rest a little bit. It also helps weaken opponents throughout a game, something the Raiders have struggled heavily with. The Raiders defence ranked a paltry 26th last season should now be able to improve.
While the Raiders are not exactly contenders just yet under Campbell, their improvements this season will be proof that Campbell was the biggest steal of the year.
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