derek anderson

After leading the Browns to an improbable victory Sunday afternoon in Cleveland Browns Stadium, Derek Anderson jogged off the field as if there were helium in his cleats. The third-year quarterback had just turned his 15 minutes of fame into an hour of relative brilliance, throwing for five touchdowns and 328 yards in a game he wasn't expected to finish, let alone win.

A gangly 6-foot-6-inch Oregon State product, Anderson orchestrated the thrilling 51-45 victory over the favored Bengals by nearly matching Carson Palmer, his Pro Bowl MVP counterpart, touchdown pass for touchdown pass. Ultimately, Anderson lost the individual battle (6-5), but he did win the game and some momentary adulation from a crowd that came expecting -- make that wanting -- him to fail because it would open the door for rookie first-round pick and home-state product Brady Quinn.

The question all week was not whether Quinn would play against the Bengals, but how quickly? First quarter? Second series? Third incompletion? When Anderson made his way to the sideline after misfiring on his first five passes, a fan behind the Cleveland bench took off his No. 10 Quinn jersey and waved it against the front-row railing, trying to get the attention of Anderson.

Anderson knows it's a matter of time before Quinn takes over, saying late last week: "Whenever they draft a guy in the first round, they're always going to try and groom him to be the guy eventually."

But if Anderson can keep playing well, keep winning, he knows he can delay the inevitable.

The Browns began clearing a path for Quinn two days after the season opener when they traded starter Charlie Frye to Seattle for a sixth-round draft choice, then handed the keys to Anderson and ostensibly told him to warm the engine for Quinn. Privately, the plan was to avoid starting Quinn until Week 8, after they returned from the bye week. But his strong showing in the preseason -- despite missing a big chunk of camp because of a contract impasse -- opened some eyes and minds. Wide receiver Braylon Edwards spoke for many in the locker room last week when responding to a question about the inevitability of Quinn playing and whether club officials should go ahead and do it sooner than later.

"I'm not in on those discussions," he said, "but in the backs of their minds, if that's what they're ultimately going to do, if they're just buying some time because they know that's the move they're going to make, then I would rather do it now and get it out the way and be able to build a future, build a base, build that foundation. But if that's something you don't know, then that's something we can't make a move on. If it's up in the air, if it's an uncertainty, then leave it alone. But if that's how you're feeling, that he's going to be the guy this year, then go ahead and make that move now and allow us to progress."

Coach Romeo Crennel stressed last week that Quinn was one snap from being the starter, citing the possibility of an injury to or poor play by Anderson. Many football coaches believe that past performance is the best predictor of future performance, and Anderson entered this season with an 0-3 record as a starter and eight interceptions and five touchdown passes. Even after Anderson tied the franchise record Sunday with five aerial scores, general manager Phil Savage acknowledged that the performance would not affect the evaluation process of Quinn.

"I don't really think it does, as much as what people would think," he said. "It's funny, over the summer people said [Quinn] looked awful in the OTAs and minicamps and all that. Then two weeks into the preseason, it's like, 'When's he going to play?'

"What we've tried to do is get some foundation for him," said Savage. "A point was made that it's new for the other 10 guys on offense as well, so let's get them up and running before we throw a rookie quarterback into it. So, I think today obviously prolongs it. If we go out there today and score seven points, maybe that changes things. But to have that kind of outbreak on offense, I think it makes us feel like we can compete ... the next four, five weeks."



Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer and Browns signal-caller Derek Anderson combined for 729 yards passing and 11 touchdowns in Sunday's 51-45 shootout.

STUDS

Carson Palmer, QB, Bengals � His 401-yard, 6-TD outing was the stuff of fantasy legend, but still not enough to win the game.

Jake Delhomme, QB, Panthers � Threw for 307 yards and 3 TDs in a losing effort.

Jamal Lewis, RB, Browns � Rumbled for 215 yards and a TD in Cleveland's free-for-all.

Marion Barber III, RB, Cowboys � Piled on two more scores to go with 89 rushing yards. Frank Gore, RB, 49ers � Did his late mama proud with 81 yards and a pair of scores.

Steve Smith, WR, Panthers � Nabbed 8 catches for 153 yards and a hat trick.

Chad Johnson, WR, Bengals � Scored twice and amassed 209 receiving yards.

Braylon Edwards, WR, Browns � Toasted the Bengals for 146 yards and 2 TDs.

Joey Galloway, WR, Buccaneers � Made the most of his 4 catches with 135 yards and 2 TDs.

Randy Moss, WR, Patriots � His 105-yard, 2-TD evening proved last week was no fluke.

DUDS

LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, Chargers � 58 combined yards without a score is about as bad as it gets for the great one.

Chris Brown, RB, Titans � Last week's rushing leader managed just 34 yards.

Ronald Curry, WR, Raiders � Fortunate to get 12 yards against Champ Bailey.

Lee Evans, WR, Bills � A 17-yard outing marks his second consecutive flop.

Mark Clayton, WR, Ravens � Actually lost a yard on his only catch.

Patrick Crayton, WR, Cowboys � A goose egg is no way to fill in for Terry Glenn.

SURPRISES

Derek Anderson, QB, Browns � Posted 328 yards and 5 TDs for the one guy who started him.

Cadillac Williams, RB, Buccaneers � Scored twice, doubling his '06 production.

DeShawn Wynn, RB, Packers � Who's that running for 50 yards and 2 TDs?For the American football player, see Derek Anderson (football player).
Derek Lamont Anderson (born July 18, 1974 in Louisville, Kentucky) is an American professional basketball player for the Charlotte Bobcats.

Anderson is a graduate of Doss High School and was a Kentucky All-Star. Anderson played college basketball at the Ohio State University and the University of Kentucky. In 1996, Anderson helped the University of Kentucky win the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship as part of a team that featured seven future NBA players. Anderson went on to graduate from the University of Kentucky in 1997.

He was first selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers as the 13th overall pick to the 1997 NBA Draft, despite missing much of his second senior season at Kentucky due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). He played for Cleveland from 1997�1999.

Anderson's NBA career has been plagued by injuries. In the 2004-2005 season he only played in 8 of the final 42 games for the Portland Trail Blazers, and missed similar numbers of games in prior seasons. On August 3, 2005, he was the first player in the league waived using the so-called "luxury tax amnesty clause" of the 2005 NBA collective bargaining agreement. He would sign with the Houston Rockets as a free agent before being traded to the Miami Heat in exchange for Gerald Fitch.

Anderson was waived by Heat on September 12, 2006, prior to the beginning of the 2006-07 season. Several weeks later, on November 28, he signed with the Charlotte Bobcats [1]