Brady Quinn or Derek Anderson? Why Not Both?

As we are all aware, Eric Mangini has an interesting situation to deal with at the quarterback position in Cleveland. I, like many others, feel that Brady Quinn and not Derek Anderson would be the right choice going forward. However, this is not about that.

From Eric Mangini's standpoint, he has two guys brought in by the previous administration and is not sure on either one. Sure, he has seen game film on both, but he hasn't worked with either of the QBs. Now he has to decide who he will start and who he will ultimately have to trade.

Here's the problem: he doesn't have enough information to make the decision.

Quinn has shown promise, but has hardly had enough playing time to be certain about him. Anderson has been really good at times, but inconsistency and turnovers have created many doubters.

The other part of the problem is that the rest of the league is aware of this too, and have been reluctant to trade for either Anderson or Quinn. They don't want to pick up an expensive contract when the guy may only be a backup.

So Mangini declares an open competition in camp. Will that solve the problem? I don't think so. Irregardless of who wins the job, you are still stuck with the other.

You could cut him, but then you take a salary cap hit. Then you will leave the guy on the bench and not be increasing his trade value in any way.

Also, can you really get an accurate picture? One guy will start on the road at Lambeau Field and the other will start at home against the Lions. Regardless of who you prefer, admit that it isn't fair.

So how does Mangini deal with this?

My suggestion is something that goes against conventional wisdom—a two-quarterback rotation. They could alternate series in and out.

I know many are thinking, "No Way! We have to have one guy." That is the truth, but for the moment, there is still uncertainty on who that one guy should be. So before you close your mind to this, look at some of the positives of doing this.

Both guys are still developing, and rotating them could definitely take the pressure of being the one captain off of them.

If one guy is having a better game than the other, Mangini can go with the hot hand in the fourth quarter. Then that will motivate the other to perform better in the next game.

If they both do well, there is a stronger case for trading with other teams. With a last-place schedule, it is highly possible that they could both do well.

If one guy does well and the other doesn't, then your decision becomes easy. Unfortunately, that will decrease the trade value of the other.

The worst-case scenario would be that neither do well. That would make it impossible to trade either, but at least you would know you need to go elsewhere.

Like I said, this isn't something that the Browns can do forever, but it is probably the best way to handle the situation.

The good thing is that Quinn and Anderson do get along and are both very professional. They would both handle it with class.

Mangini recently said that he could keep both because they both bring different things to the offense. That is true. Quinn is a very accurate thrower, a natural leader, and will make good decisions. Anderson has a cannon for an arm.

So if they can both help you, why keep one on the bench? To me, that doesn't make sense. Running backs rotate, especially when running styles are different.

So if you can do this at other positions, why not at quarterback?