Paul Sakuma / AP JaMarcus Russell, the top pick in the NFL draft, signed a six-year $61 million deal with the Raiders last week, which included a reported $29 million in guaranteed money.

JaMarcus Russell was drafted No. 1 overall by the Oakland Raiders to be the face of the franchise.

And he's being paid like it. His $61 million contract, with a record $29 million in guaranteed money, and the guaranteed $27.2 million given to Lions receiver Calvin Johnson, should not be alarming for the financial future of the NFL.

The Raiders are making an investment in a talented young quarterback who will be the centerpiece of any future success the franchise enjoys over the next decade or more.

Of course, the only guarantee is the contract. There have been enough busts in the NFL to know players who starred in college don't always star in the pros.

Names like Tim Couch, Akili Smith and Joey Harrington come to mind.

The idea behind not giving large guaranteed contracts to rookies is to make the players work for their contract. I think giving a lot of money to a player up front like Russell will help the Raiders in their approach in developing Russell.

Too many times quarterbacks are thrown into terrible situations with virtually no chance to succeed. Harrington never had a chance in Detroit because he spent most of his rookie season on his back because of a weak offensive line and anemic running game.

Couch was in a similar position in Cleveland.

Remember David Carr's five seasons in Houston? The former No. 1 pick was sacked a record 76 times his rookie season and 249 in his tenure with the Texans. Now he's a backup in Carolina and will probably never be a star.

The Bengals threw Smith into the fire too soon and may have learned something by giving Carson Palmer a season to learn from the sideline.

The point is, with so much money invested in Russell, the Raiders, if they are smart (which is a big question), are not about to set him up for failure.

For $29 million guaranteed, they should be patient and develop him the right way.

If the Raiders had not thrown so much guaranteed money at Russell, they probably would be more careless with his development.

Do you think if the Texans gave Carr $30 million in guaranteed money they would have thought about spending some money protecting him?

A player's career can end on any one play. It seems right to give your face of the franchise a good chunk of money right away. It should help Russell relax and become the best player he can be. And it should help the Raiders be the best they can be at developing their young savior.

— Ben Kwasney is assistant sports editor for The Star. His e-mail address is bkwasney@VenturaCountyStar.com.