But these skills are no different than what the majority of starting quarterbacks in the NFL currently have. What a lot of the average to below average quarterbacks usually don’t have is an offensive line that rarely gives up a sack or too much pressure, a trio of 6’4ish” wide receivers who know how to get open and make spectacular catches, and a bruising running back who is capable of breaking it for a big carry every down.Anderson’s responsibilities haven’t been as much of a burden as Charlie Frye made it seem. The reality is that Anderson has been the beneficiary of the great situation around him moreso than the other way around.

Anderson has had a knack for being able to get it to his teammates but was exposed Sunday for something that should have been brought to light long ago- that Anderson hardly ever hits his receivers in stride. Braylon Edwards, Kellen Winslow and Joe Jurevicius are often left having to make an acrobatic catch, or they have to reach behind them, or they have to leap in traffic leaving them open to a injuries we don’t want to imagine.

One thing overshadowed by the media’s coverage of Derek Anderson, is the improved offensive scheme and play calling of first-year offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski, who was on the Chargers staff last season as a tight end coach. He simply has done what previous coordinator Maurice Carthon would refuse to do and that is flex your system to the strengths on your team. Carthon had a dink and dunk, senseless and sometimes utterly baffling offensive play calling system that rarely used Braylon Edwards and that gave Winslow 90 catches, but most were short throws or dump-offs. Chudzinski opened up the offense and that has undoubtedly made it easier for a guy like Anderson, who struggles with his accuracy but has the arm to get it to his receivers area.

Now there is the Jamal Lewis factor, whom the Browns have relied on much more as the season has worn down. The Browns are 3-2 in their last 5 games. The Browns are 3-0 in that stretch when Jamal runs for over 100 yards, 0-2 when he doesn’t. Earlier in the year when the Browns relied less on Lewis, Anderson’s better performances came against the Dolphins, Rams and Bengals. Two of those pass defenses are not going to be confused for the Pittsburgh’s and Baltimore’s of the world and the third, the Miami Dolphins, ranks fourth in pass defense mainly because teams simply run the ball down their throat in the second half of games because teams are usually up on them by a significant margin in the second half.

Yes I understand the Browns are 9-5 with him as the starter. Yes I understand he has thrown 28 TD passes this season and for over 3600 yards. But here are some of the factors some people don’t seem to want to come to grips with- Anderson is 27th in completion percentage, 18th in quarterback rating and only Carson Palmer and Eli Manning have thrown mare interceptions. Anderson also makes very questionable decisions on his throws often leaving a receiver either out to dry, or being forced to catch the ball behind them or in coverage. It seems that Braylon Edwards has made enough spectacular catches this season to keep Anderson above the 50% mark for the season.

Anderson still has a lot of problems that fail to get mentioned. Poor accuracy on short throws, below average accuracy on the medium throw, often throws into double and even triple coverage, misses open receivers, and recently two more have crept back into his list of issues-- locking onto his main target and poor clock management.

This is more than the one game stigma that you are hearing about. These were the type of throws Anderson made all year. It was there when the Browns played the Patriots and Steelers, but lately he has been doing it against teams with injured secondaries and poor defenses like the Bengals and Cardinals.

Anderson deserves every chance to be the starter next year if he is still here. What I am begging Phil Savage is to tender Anderson and pray you get a first and third rounder from someone. If no one bites, make him win the job. He has played well enough to let the Browns weapons run rampant on the opposition. The next step is improvement. Will it be Anderson? I don’t know. 

I am not lobbying for Brady Quinn at this point. But Anderson’s recent struggles have done nothing if they haven’t opened the debate. I was never a fan of handing the job to Anderson full time in the first place, but the recent events have made me even more weary of what Phil Savage may do. Quinn is on the bench and while many argue that we don’t know what we will get out of him, the reality is that we don’t know what we are going to get from Anderson on a week to week basis either and recent events have proven that.

Keep in mind what Brady Quinn did in college. And spare me the arguments like “Well, that was college” and the ever-famous “He lost in the big games”. News flash- Derek Anderson struggles on the road and in big games. Quinn played with marginal talent and a shaky offensive line in college and still broke most of Notre Dames records. The Browns have a great line and plethora of talent for him to get the ball to.

You have a first rounder on the bench we know little about. But with Anderson being so up and down, you have to wonder if Quinn should get more of a look in training camp.

What I do is tender Anderson. If he wins the job and does well next season great. If he tries to leave and Savage thinks he is worthy of it, franchise him. Right now, we hold the cards on him. And he has done everything to be given another shot next season. He hasn’t done enough to render a big Tony Romo-like contract that many of the Browns faithful want him to get in the offseason.

Sure, we have no real game proof of how Brady Quinn will play. But quarterbacks who were four-year starters in college, in a pro-style offense, that have the mental toughness, the willingness to learn and the physical tools Quinn have hardly ever fail. Now you figure what toys the Browns have for him to play with on offense and there isn’t a situation where I see him fail.

I am not cocky enough to guarantee that Quinn will succeed nor will I be arrogant enough to think that I know what the future holds. Let them play it out in the offseason and camps and I’ll take the better of the two.

But based on all the determining factors, my notion is that Brady Quinn will eventually prove to be the better quarterback anyway… no matter where he may play.