Darrell Russell (American football)

Darrell Anthony Russell, Jr. (May 27, 1976 – December 15, 2005) was an American football defensive tackle for the Oakland Raiders and Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He died in a car crash near Los Angeles after being indefinitely banned from the NFL for repeated violations of the league's substance abuse policy.

Darrell Russell
refer to caption
Darrell Russell while with the Oakland Raiders
No. 96
Position:Defensive tackle
Personal information
Born:(1976-05-27)May 27, 1976
Pensacola, Florida, U.S.
Died:December 15, 2005(2005-12-15) (aged 29)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:325 lb (147 kg)
Career information
High school:San Diego (CA) St. Augustine
College:USC
NFL Draft:1997 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles:184
Sacks:28.5
Interceptions:3
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Early life

Darrell Anthony Russell, Jr. was born in Pensacola, Florida.[1][2] His mother, Eleanor Russell, divorced in 1986 from Darrell Anthony Russell Sr. when their only child was four years old, and moved from Florida to Southern California.[2] Russell grew up in a rough part of San Diego just a few blocks from Lincoln Kennedy. Russell graduated from St. Augustine High School.

College career

Russell attended the University of Southern California and, after a dominant 1996 season that featured 19 tackles for loss,[3] was taken second overall in the 1997 NFL Draft by Al Davis and the Raiders.

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 4+5⁄8 in
(1.95 m)		 321 lb
(146 kg)		 35+1⁄8 in
(0.89 m)		 10+1⁄2 in
(0.27 m)		4.80 s4.26 s7.65 s31.5 in
(0.80 m)		8 ft 0 in
(2.44 m)		25 reps
[2]

At 6-foot-5-inch (196 cm), 320-pounds Russell ran the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds.[2] Russell was drafted with the second overall pick in the first round of the 1997 NFL Draft.[4] Russell's seven-year, $22 million contract in 1997 was at the time the richest rookie contract ever signed in the NFL.[5]

He went on to have 28.5 career sacks. After making the Pro Bowl in 1998 and 1999, averaging ten sacks per year, he was poised to have a dominant NFL career. However, the following season he failed a drug test, which his lawyer attributed to "second-hand smoke," and was later suspended for four games in 2001 for a second violation, this time for failing to be tested.[3] Shortly after that, he tested positive for a banned substance and was given a one-year suspension, which effectively wiped out his 2002 season. Russell missed 1½ years while serving two league suspensions before he played in eight games in 2003 for the Washington Redskins. However, the positive drug tests kept coming, and Russell was suspended indefinitely by the league. Russell's positive drug test in 2004 was his seventh infraction of the league's drug policy. His last NFL experience was in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp in 2004.[6]

NFL statistics
Year Team GP Tackles Fumbles Interceptions
CombSoloAstSackFFFRIntYdsAvgLngTDPD
1997OAK 16433493.510000.0006
1998OAK 166355810.031000.0002
1999OAK 164332119.501000.0004
2000OAK 16332493.011000.0007
2001OAK 114131102.500100.0004
2002OAK 0Suspended
2003WSH 86330.010000.0000
Career[7]832291795028.563100.00023

Acting career

In 2002, he played as himself in an episode of The Jersey called "Coleman's Big Date"[8] where at an Oakland Raiders football game, his date jumps into his body as Coleman Galloway (played by Jermaine Williams) jumps into a cheerleaders' body.

Personal

He was accused in 2002 of videotaping the rape of a woman—who had been drugged with GHB—by two friends, but prosecutors dropped the charges.[5]

Death

On December 15, 2005, Russell was a passenger in a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix driven by close friend and former USC teammate Michael Bastianelli[9] when it veered out of control, hitting several items including a tree and a fire hydrant before hitting a parked bus. Both men were found unconscious and taken to area hospitals, where they were pronounced dead.[5]

References
  1. "Darrell Russell". ESPN. Retrieved December 31, 2010.
  2. Berkow, Ira (April 20, 1997). "A Life Change for Mother and Son". The New York Times. Retrieved December 31, 2010.
  3. "USC Blog".
  4. "1997 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  5. Gay, Nancy (December 16, 2005). "Ex-Raider killed in crash: Troubled DT was trying to change life". San Francisco Chronicle.
  6. Stroud, Rick (July 14, 2004). "Bucs release defensive tackle Russell". St. Petersburg Times.
  7. "Darrell Russell Stats". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  8. "The Jersey Season 3, Episode 6 Coleman's Big Date". Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  9. "Mike Bastianelli Life Profile".
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