It's easy to go after JaMarcus Russell for the Raiders' latest pratfall. He is, after all, the quarterback. The face of the franchise. The guy who gets too much credit when things go well, too much blame when things go awry, as they did Sunday in a brutal 23-3 loss to Denver.

And when he continually refuses to accept a lion's share of the blame to deflect heat from his teammates, Russell becomes an even bigger target than his 6-foot-6, 260-pound frame already provides.

"He's young, and it's called accountability," former Raiders linebacker Bill Romanowski said Monday on Comcast SportsNet California's "Raiders Press Conference Live."

"He doesn't understand that word right now."

Ouch.

Romanowski's scrutiny hurts more than Russell's NFL-low 39.8 passer rating. Cuts deeper than his bottom-feeding 41.3 percent passing. Stings more than the one yard - one yard - Russell had passing in the second half against the Broncos.

The truth? No one player can truly cost a team a game - not when Darren McFadden becomes Darren McFumbles by leaving three balls on the ground, losing one, at the Broncos' 6-yard line.

Not when Darrius Heyward-Bey has one catch - one - through three games.

Not with such vanilla play-calling.

But Russell's poor play makes it hard for the rest of the team to enjoy success, especially a gassed defense that again spent far too much time on the field - 36 minutes, 15 seconds. This after being out there for 38:39 in Kansas City, Mo., a week earlier.

A tired defense was porous in giving up 215 rushing yards to the Broncos. And when a safety, Tyvon Branch, is your leading tackler with 10, that speaks volumes for how far past the line of scrimmage Denver's ballcarriers advanced.

So here's an idea. Take the ball out of the hands of Russell, who is pressing, can't hit a receiver in stride and locks on to his pass catchers too early, though he did have one nice look off McFadden to hit Louis Murphy across the middle for an 18-yard gain. Use more imaginative play-calling.

Instead of pounding McFadden between the tackles, mix in a little Wildcat for the explosive hybrid.

Since Russell can't pass the ball to Heyward-Bey, utilize DHB's speed by calling a reverse for him early, just to let him feel the ball and get a sense of what it's like to take a lick.

If the uninspiring little dump-off screen passes to begin games are meant to build Russell's confidence, they're not a long-term solution. Not when Russell's passer rating has plummeted, from 47.6 against San Diego, to 46.0 against Kansas City to 22.6 against Denver.

Coach Tom Cable insists he is not about to make like Cleveland or Tampa Bay and bench his starting quarterback. The Bruce Gradkowski Booster Club can simmer down.

Still, in saying the Raiders were a "90-10" team, meaning "90 percent of our guys really got it, and they're doing it," Cable admitted Russell was in that "10 percent that we got to ... get them to a point where they can go in and perform like the other 90 percent."

Ouch. Again.

The coach essentially said his starting quarterback doesn't get it. Still. Three games into his make-or-break third season.

Russell is entering loathsome territory among the fan base. It's occupied by the likes of Marc Wilson and Jay Schroeder, big-armed slingers who had as much accuracy on their touch passes as they did respect from fans.

Call The Bee's Paul Gutierrez, (916) 326-5556, and read his Raiders blog and more on the team at www.sacbee.com/raiders.