DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Browns analysis: As draft approaches, Anderson's value may rise for suitors

DA's $5 million is guaranteed. we cut him and we still pay and it still counts against our cap. i don't think there is any possibility of him being cut. it's either a trade or we keep him. more likely than not, we pay the $5 million in either scenario so i wouldn't be surprised that we keep him, in the end.

that said, his incentive in helping us is him recognizing that he's playing for a new regime. if he is told he has a true shot at starting, which he would because this regime has no ties to quinn, that might be enough for him to think back to 2007 and realize they might do everything they can to maximize his ability. who knows but it's damn entertaining.

Sorry, dong, but I disagree that he has a "real shot" at starting. He does not have the skill set to fit the offense that the Browns will run.

i didn't say he has a real shot at starting, i said that if he was told he had a shot of starting by the new regime, he might consider that and why he would consider helping us out.

This is from a Detroit Lions website. The article gives an opinion on DA from an outside perspective. What is really interesting though are the posts it illicits. There are too many to copy and paste here but click the link and check out the comments. Basically Lions' fans are posting and debating DAs worth. It's funny how their opinions are aas varied as our own.


Is Derek Anderson a QB possibility for the Lions?
by Tom Kowalski | Opinion
Thursday February 19, 2009, 10:00 AM

AP File Photo
The Cleveland Browns' Derek Anderson may be a safer choice for the Detroit Lions than drafting a quarterback.INDIANAPOLIS -- If the Detroit Lions are interested in Matthew Stafford, it would make sense that they also would be interested in Cleveland quarterback Derek Anderson. They're basically the same guy, right? Both are young players who have rocket arms and still struggle with bouts of inconsistency.

The biggest difference is Anderson already has shown that he can play at the NFL level -- he went to the Pro Bowl in 2007 -- and will come much cheaper than Stafford.

The Browns, who already have Brady Quinn as their starting quarterback, are looking to trade Anderson, but they can't do it until after March 13, when Anderson is scheduled to earn a guaranteed $5 million bonus.

Because the money is guaranteed, the Browns can't cut Anderson to avoid it. It also means that the Browns can't trade Anderson before March 13 because no NFL team wants to be on the hook for it.

(Enter conspiracy theory: the Lions just restructured the contract of Daunte Culpepper, reducing his roster bonus that was due on Feb. 27 and pushing it back. The Lions don't have to pay a penny to Culpepper until the middle of March (and that's presumably a weight clause when the offseason program opens on the 16th). The restructured contract makes it easier for the Lions to cut Culpepper.)


Back to Anderson.

While Stafford would cost the Lions about $32 million in guaranteed money as the No. 1 draft choice -- and there's a question of whether he'd be ready to start in the opener -- the Lions would only have to pay Anderson a salary of $1.5 million for the 2009 season. And there's no question Anderson would be ready to play. His MCL knee sprain from last year (by the latest account) did not require surgery and Anderson has 27 career starts over the last three years. And Anderson is still quite young -- he'll turn 26 in June of this year.

One drawback to Anderson is that he gets a huge pay increase in 2010, going up to $7.5 million with a roster bonus of $2 million. But if Anderson proves to be the guy, a long-term contract could be worked out.

Anderson, who threw 29 touchdown passes and 19 interceptions in 2007, wasn't as effective last season with nine touchdowns and eight interceptions in nine starts in a year that went wrong in a lot of ways for the Browns. Anderson comes with some risks, but perhaps not as many as Stafford.

And trading for Anderson means the Lions still have the flexibility of using those top draft picks on other positions to help solidify the team.

It's something the Lions need to think about


http://www.mlive.com/lions/index.ssf/2009/02/is_derek_anderson_a_possibilit.html

Very interesting article....I'm just not to keen on the idea of trading #1 picks and going up to #1 like some of them were saying...we would just have to pay that much more for Curry.....or OT....I think I would prefer to try and give them Stallworth too and try to get something else...maybe a 2nd & a 3rd or something....

I don't get the authors thinking..

1. He says we have to pay the 5 million no matter what and they would only be on the hook for his 09 salary.

2. He mentions having all their high picks for other uses instead of a QB but never mentions what they are giving US in picks.

Is he assuming we swap pick 5 for 1 and pay the 5 million bonus ?
No one we need THAT high and trading back out of one for more picks is darn hard to do.

How bout YOU pay the 5 million AND give us your other 1rst rounder or this other team will....

I think I'd rather pay DA 5 million then take a QB number one this year for a 40 million dollar contract. As hard as that is to say....... What do they expect to pay for a proven PROBOWL QB ?

I'm crossing my fingers!! The Lions are the perfect trade partner for Derek Anderson. I want the 20th pick but I'll be happy with the 33rd pick!

I don't think they are perfect at all.

They currently have Culpepper, Stanton, and Kitna on the roster.

I think the Lions might be a fit for Anderson.

I am pretty sure the Lions just restructured the contract of Daunte Culpepper, reducing his roster bonus that was due in Feb. and pushing it back until a later not....not sure when.

That would give them more time to decide, and possibly cut Culpepper.

And we might add in the Bucs

http://www.prosportsdaily.com/comments/anderson-trade-a-possibility-for-bucs-204560.html


NDIANAPOLIS – A lot of the talk here at the combine is centering around the Bucs and their quarterback position.

Few believe the Bucs are ready to just hand the starter’s job to Luke McCown, so the question is, who they will bring in to challenge McCown for the starter’s job.

Free agents such as Byron Leftwich, J.P. Losman and Patrick Ramsey are all being thrown around as possibilities but one possibility that is gaining steam would have the Bucs trading with the Browns for Derek Anderson.

Anderson has one of the strongest arms in the league as well as just about every physical tool you need to be a difference maker at his position. What he doesn’t have is a great understanding of defenses or the game’s nuances.

With a little work and a bit of a push he could be developed into one of the game’s better quarterbacks and word is the Brown might take as little as a third-round pick for him.

When you consider that he’s younger than Luke McCown but has more experience than McCown it doesn’t sound like a bad option for the Bucs to consider, especially with Jeff Jagodzinski running the offense.

Jagodzinski figures to be a little more aggressive than Jon Gruden was and Anderson would probably fit what he does well. Also, with Jagodzinski and Greg Olson tutoring him, Olson would likely max out on his potential.

Cpeppers bonus was moved back to March 16th.....

nordawg

Sold to the highest bidder!!!!
We need draft picks..

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and word is the Brown might take as little as a third-round pick for him.

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If they consider a 3rd round pick the BOTTOM of what they would accept then maybe his value is higher than some on here want to admit..

I think a third is about right for DA...or, maybe a second from a team that has never watched film.

Exactly..if you take the emotions out of evaluating Anderson from a Browns Fans point of view and look at the hard numbers, 26 years old, rocket arm, a pro bowl..it's easy to see that Anderson is safer than an unknown college player. Especially one leaving college a year early. I said it at the end of the regular season and I will say it again. The Lions are better off trading their 20th or 33rd pick for Anderson and drafting an OL with the 1st pick.

And make no mistake about it...with TWO first round picks...that Overall #33 pick is not a Make a wish fantasy for DA.

Nice to know they could be in the mix. The more the merrier

Can't wait till we pay the bonus and let the Games Begin

JMHO

I don't know Michelle, I guess it depends on how big of a gambler you are.. if you look at a guy like Stafford who has a lot of the same question marks as DA only a whole lot more, are you going to pay him #1 pick money or pay DA his relatively low 1 year salary and see if he could be the answer? so you give up an early second round pick and then use that #1 pick to try to fill some other hole, and the Lions have a BUNCH of holes.

I have my own opinions on DA but if I try to be objective, if I was a Lions fan I'd think taking DA was probably the right way to go. Take him then restructure his contract. Look, the Lions aren't going to the playoffs this year or next year.. so why not take a QB that has SOME experience and build up that OL and DL, fill some of these other needs, then a couple years from now if more pieces are in place and DA just isn't cutting it, go get your high draft pick. But don't bring the high draft pick QB into a team with so many other holes...

I would not take anything less than a 2nd...a 3rd would be a steal for some team....he has more value for us than 95% of the 3rd round picks.

If anything this fanbase is undervalueing DA...and I don´t even wanna think of the reasons for it...it really is a shame and a prime example of the fans hatred making a team worse (if traded for a 3rd)

Name one person who has "hatred" for DA. You can't. YOu just can't accept the fact that he isn't Brett Favre and people can actually see the weaknesses in his game. The only reason we will get more than a 3rd is if multiple teams start looking at him because their QB is even worse than DA, which leaves only a handful of teams to be interested in him

I hate to break it to you but DA is not a good QB. I have listed all his weaknesses in the past. You can choose to ignore him but that doesn't mean those that don't put blinders on have "hatred" for him. He's a great kid, but a mediocre, at best, QB.

Also, taking a 3rd wouldn't "hurt" the team....it would take away a distraction and solidify and unify the team and fanbase.

"I would not take anything less than a 2nd...a 3rd would be a steal for some team....he has more value for us than 95% of the 3rd round picks."

my exact sentiments. Its not a bargain basement outlet sale! If we don't get anything good we hold onto him...at what cost? 1.something million?

JMHO

Mediocre? I would say he's an above average QB. Anderson has flaws but he played well when the OL was healthy in 2007. He crumbled under pressure at the end of 2007 but some may just look at that as growing pains.

He played well when his reecievers were making circus catches on his inaccurate passes, the OL was very good, the running game was strong, the opposition was weak, and there was no game film of him for DCs to break down. He's very much a Scott Mitchell.

Yeah he played well, when everything was set up right for him..as Coach says receivers making circus catches...and I might add defenses playing straight up..
Once teams started taking away deep routes and making him have to adjust to the rotating coverages he failed...he can't hit the underneath patterns ..and he is not a true accurate passer.

Circus catches? Name me a QB who plays well when the OL isn't strong, the running game isn't strong and the WR's aren't reliable? Whether or not he turns out like Scott Mitchell is yet to be seen. But right now some coach's and GM's are going to look at his 2007 performance and the Giants game this season and see a QB who has success behind a strong OL. He has the same skill set as the so called top rated QB in the draft yet he has some proven success in the NFL with a Pro Bowl under his belt. He's definately worth a late first round to early second round pick this year and better than any QB (right now) a team can get in the draft.

And we can all thank the Patriots for franchising Cassel thus making Anderson the best option for a team looking for a starting this offseason.

The Steelers WR's were reliable all season long. And the running game found some success behind a suspect OL.

Correct, he played well when the OL was playing well and the recievers were catching the football. If you call that "when everything was set up right for him" then we are in agreement. LOL

And when will you see when those right things were gone..he pretty much displayed his weaknesses all the time?

I realized that when I watched him play. This would be the case with any QB in the NFL. In his first season as a starter he played well, well enough to be nominated to the Pro Bowl. Yes he faltered at the end of 2007, much like Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco at the end of this season.

Don't get me wrong, I want Quinn to be our starter and think he is better than Anderson. I'm just arguing that Andersons trade value is higher than what some people think.

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Yes he faltered at the end of 2007, much like Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco at the end of this season.

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Let's see how those two guys do next season... I'll be watching to see if the end of the year problems continue into next season as it did for Anderson.

j/c

I'll believe it when I see it.

Or the team says "then we can get a bargain by giving the Browns our 3rd rounder and Adrian Peterson"

I'm just arguing that Andersons trade value is higher than what some people think.
Then debate coming from the standpoint of what other teams need..not his actual performance..
Then me stress this from different look..if DA would have been traded to a division rival he would not have hurt the Browns..
U take his gunslinger abilty away and he is a incompetent QB..