Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Brady Quinn Makes the Most of A Moment


Much like USC quarterback Mark Sanchez, the last thing Cleveland Browns quarterback Derek Anderson needs is an injury. Both quarterbacks have very talented back-ups eager to get on the field, and both are right to be concerned that if those back-ups ever get on the field it may be impossible to put them back on the sidelines.

Sanchez is re-habbing like mad from a dislocated kneecap in hopes of being behind center for the Trojans' opening game at Virginia. He doesn't want Mitch Mustain or Aaron Corp at the helm for a USC victory in Charlottesville, which would definitely put in doubt Sanchez' lock on the starting QB spot for the pivotal game against Ohio State (and the rest of the season).

Derek Anderson, on the verge of being cut from the Browns heading into regular season play last year, suddenly caught fire and his strong play in 2007 has so far kept Notre Dame star Brady Quinn on the bench. But Anderson suffered a concussion early in the second quarter of last night's pre-season game against the NY Giants, opening the door for Quinn.

Before leaving the game, the Browns had looked simply awful on both sides of the ball. Anderson completed 4 of 10 passes for 20 yards before being knocked out of the game.

Quinn took advantage of his opportunity, completing 7 of 12 passes for 124 yards and 1 TD. His passer rating on the night was 121.5. In the two pre-season games so far, Quinn is 20 of 29 for 257 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, and a passer rating of 93.6.

Anderson through two pre-season games is 8 of 15 for 40 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, passer rating of 81.2.

The Browns, who trailed the Giants 30-3 less than a minute into the second quarter, responded well to Quinn and were eventually able to close the scoring gap to 37-34 by the end of the game.

The Browns will certainly downplay Anderson's injury. They'll say that BQ was playing against second teamers. But Brady clearly helped his cause last night, because the next time Anderson struggles to move the team, the Cleveland fans will remember this Monday Night Football performance and the calls for BQ will intensify.

Click on this link for video highlights of Brady's performance.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I want BQ to succeed as much as anyone, but did you see the game last night? He didn't look bad, but he also didn't outplay Anderson to be honest. His TD was basically luck mixed in with a great play by the receiver.

I think BQ is/will be better than Anderson, but the fact remains Cleveland reupped Anderson's contract and basically made him the starter until he either has a season ending injury, or really really screws the pooch.

Great blog by the way. Read it alot.

Go IRISH!

Anonymous said...

Luck is always a factor...at least to some degree. BQ will either unseat Anderson or he will be gone at some point. The Browns can get away with what they are doing, but in the not to distant future they will have to make a decision and trade one of the two players. I have a difficult time believing it will be BQ.

GO IRISH!