Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson Are Both The Victims Of Gutless Leaders

The soap opera that is the Cleveland Browns quarterback controversy has really taken on a life of it's own. It really has divided the city. How did it come to this?

The photo above is an illustration of how both Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson have both been class acts throughout the whole ordeal. That makes it unfortunate because these guys are both good guys who don't deserve this.

I have been up and down on this on whether there should be a competition. Those who know my articles know where I stand on who the guy should be. However, I am to a point where I think neither guy benefits from this. Whoever starts opening day will have to deal with the fans chanting for the other guy as soon as he falters at all.

To answer my original question on how it came to this, it is clearly the lack of guts by coaches, management, and ownership to stand up and make a decision. No matter who comes in, it is the same story.

Let's look at the history. The Browns draft Quinn in 2007 to be the quarterback of the future. The key word was future because Anderson was to be the guy to hold it above water until Quinn was ready. Then Anderson had a Pro Bowl season.

That is when the gutlessness started. Romeo Crennel and Phil Savage now had a big decision to make. Do they resign Anderson or do they let him go and turn it over to Quinn?

They decide to resign Anderson but keep Quinn. Think about the message that sent to both guys. "Derek, you're our guy but we are not that confident in you so we are keeping Quinn." "Brady, we like you but not enough to turn the team over to you."

That was so unfair to both. Anderson could never really feel like the QB of the future as long as Quinn was there. Meanwhile, Quinn was being held hostage by the Browns. Then the nightmare of a season happens.

Then when Eric Mangini and George Kokinis are hired, they too can't make a decision. They have handled it even worse than their predecessors. Not only can't they chose but they also let it out that they don't like either one. That was just dumb because you want to build the value up so you can trade one.

Trade offers were made for Quinn. I have heard many rumors as to why those trades didn't go through. One rumor was that Mankok was about to pull the trigger but Randy Lerner stepped in and squashed it.

If that is the case, that makes me scratch my head even more. An owner has the right to make an executive decision whenever he sees fit. However, don't make the decision half way. If you want Quinn then you name him the starter. Then you take responsibility for it.

Lerner is doing Quinn no favor if he doesn't allow them to trade him, but allow them to not play him. I am not predicting that that will happen but you never know.

Instead they created doubt around the league about both guys. Now they are stuck with both contracts for another year and no clear direction as to who the guy is. Will somebody stop messing with their careers and make the decision. That way the team can move forward and the other guy can move on.

So whether it is Eric Mangini, George Kokinis, Brian Daboll or Randy Lerner make a decision please and stop the madness. The reality is that it is unfair to both guys. Whoever gets the job will really not have a fair chance. Having the other guy there will only interfere with his development.