Brady Quinn May Have One More Chance in Cleveland

For those wondering what Brady Quinn’s future with the Cleveland Browns may be, Team President Mike Holmgren offered hope it still may be as the starting quarterback.

In an interview with Browns-president-must-decide-if-Quinn-is-worth-the-time" title="Holmgren Chat">Cantonrep.com this past week, Holmgren said quarterbacks need 32 professional starts before you can accurately say whether or not it’s time to move on. (That’s two full seasons for the math-challenged.)

Quinn has had exactly 12 professional starts, meaning he hasn’t even had one full season of starts in which to be evaluated.

This obviously is good news if you’re a Quinn supporter, but Holmgren quantified his remarks by adding his belief that he can make any quarterback better, including Derek Anderson.

Holmgren also said he’s not made any decisions yet because he’s been busy doing other things—but this also is good.

It means Holmgren is focusing on the job of being Team President and not trying to micromanage.

There was one very interesting comment to come out of the interview, though.

Holmgren noted that head coach Eric Mangini did come to him for help on the quarterback situation.

For the Mangini-haters out there, this seemingly would be one of those “Gotcha!” moments that affirms your belief that Mangini has no idea what he’s doing.

You would be wrong.

All this is proof of is that Mangini knows his strength resides on the defensive side of the ball, and he has become wise enough to go seek help on the quarterback situation from one of the best in the business (who, fortunately, works in the same building).

Holmgren also hit the nail on the head with his remark that no matter who is behind center, or what round he was drafted in, it’s up to the coaching staff to develop that quarterback into a winner.

Holmgren directed this sentiment at Quinn specifically, saying, "He’s physically kind of what you want, so...I would ask the question that probably fans would ask. I’m going, OK...what’s happened?  And that’s what I’m trying to figure out."

Free agency is creeping up fast, so a decision on Quinn will be made sooner rather than later.

It would be better for this organization if Quinn is deemed fit enough for one more chance.

Keeping Quinn would mean less to juggle through free agency, and it would help clarify who the team targets in the upcoming draft. In addition, it will help the coaching staff begin focusing all their efforts into capitalizing on the quarterback they do have instead of trying to prepare multiple schemes to be ready for what they might have.

So the question Browns fans have been asking, while not answered, now has more clarity as to how the answer will come.

Does Holmgren believe Quinn is worth the commitment of another season, or does he believe it's time to move on?

It'll come down to Holmgren's formula and his gut, both of which are time-tested and championship-proven.