FanHouse DerekAnderson

Braylon Edwards would probably like to get his hands on a time machine and go back 12 months. And as long as we're defying the laws of physics, Derek Anderson would like to hitch a ride, too. A year ago, both players were coming off Pro Bowl seasons.

Today, they're still with the team, but have endured myriad trade rumors, inconsistent play, and for Anderson, a midseason benching.

Yet, training camp is five weeks off and both remain on the roster. New head coach Eric Mangini hasn't named his starting quarterback, although the word on the street is that it's Brady Quinn's job to lose. And Edwards, the club's 2005 first-round pick, is not only off the trading block, but should be an integral part of the Browns' offense.

It was nearly a year ago that then-Browns lost cornerback Daven Holly blew out his knee in organized team activities. He missed the 2008 season, and his absence, along with Gary Baxter never working out in Cleveland, meant the team had to rely on Brandon McDonald and Eric Wright.

Both were second-year players, and although Wright showed promise, McDonald was out his depth from the start. I wouldn't argue that losing Holly opened the flood gates on a four-win season -- Derek Anderson misfiring balls all over the yard gets the blue ribbon for that -- but it didn't help, either.

Perhaps the best way to ease a young NFL quarterback into the starting job is to surround him with playmakers, the support of a suffocating defense, or both. That way, he's seldom in the position of having to win a game, but has the benefit of gaining experience.

The strategy worked for the Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger in 2004, and the Ravens and Joe Flacco and the Falcons and Matt Ryan last season. Pittsburgh was 15-1, Baltimore and Atlanta were 11-5. It helps to have most of the pieces in place before handing over the offense to a young QB, but it's not mandatory; the Ravens won five times the year before Flacco arrived, and the Falcons won four.

A year ago, Eric Mangini, still the Jets head coach, was contemplating making a quarterback change. Chad Pennington and Kellen Clemens were scheduled to fight for the job, and Mangini, uninspired by his options, eventually traded for Brett Favre and released Pennington.

After an 8-3 start, the Jets, largely due to Favre's inconsistent play, finished 1-4 and missed the playoffs. Pennington signed with the Dolphins and promptly led them to the AFC East title.

Mangini is now with the Browns (and Favre is retired, at least momentarily), but last year's experiences may have influenced his decision with his new club. Leading up to last month's draft, speculation had Cleveland trading Brady Quinn. It didn't happen, and apparently there were plenty of opportunities.

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

One year removed from a 10-win season, and on the heels of a four-win effort, owner Randy Lerner decided change was in order. He fired head coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Phil Savage and brought in Eric Mangini and George Kokonis.

If the first draft under the new leadership is any indication, the Browns will use the last weekend in April to restock the roster, and eschew high-priced, quick-fix free agents. The previous regime had a healthy mix of the two: Gary Baxter, Eric Steinbach, LeCharles Bentley and Donte' Stallworth were signed as free agents; Kamerion Wimbley, Joe Thomas and Brady Quinn were all high-round draft picks.

The Browns won four games last season. It cost Phil Savage and Romeo Crennel their jobs, and has led to an offseason full of speculation about whom the team will draft with the fifth-overall pick next Saturday.

Cleveland's collapse was mildly surprising; it won 10 games in 2007 and just missed the playoffs. With the quarterback position seemingly decided -- Derek Anderson went to the Pro Bowl in '07 -- only the defense needed fixing. Trading for Shaun Rogers and Corey Williams accomplished that (in theory, anyway) and all that remained was winning the Super Bowl.

Nearly a month ago, the National Football Post's Michael Lombardi hinted that Brady Quinn might not be accurate enough to make it as an NFL starter. He added, "As Cleveland makes changes to its roster, don't count out making a move at quarterback."

During the five weeks of McJaygate, Quinn was often mentioned as Jay Cutler's possible replacement in Denver. (The thinking: Josh McDaniels and Charlie Weis worked together in New England, and Weis would later coach Quinn at Notre Dame.)

Despite having a new Browns coaching staff in place, the old quarterback controversy between Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn lingers like an unwanted party guest. Really, everything would have been easier if Anderson didn't light up the scoreboard for a handful of games in 2007. Then they could have made the transition to Quinn.

Everyone's favorite soldiah, Kellen Winslow, is now the NFL's highest paid tight end of all-time -- but he plays for Tampa Bay, not Cleveland anymore. Regardless, he discussed the Browns' offense on Sirius NFL and he seems to agree Quinn is the way to go.

Jay Cutler is headed to Chicago. According to the Broncos' official website, Denver has agreed in principle to trade Cutler to the Bears. The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that the Bears will send the Broncos their 2009 and 2010 first-round picks, a 2009 third-rounder and Kyle Orton in exchange for their first real quarterback since Erik Kramer threw for nearly 4,000 yards in 1995. The Bears also receive a 2009 fifth-round pick from Denver.

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The hardest thing to figure out about the Broncos' decision to trade Jay Cutler was determining fair value for a soon-to-be 26-year-old quarterback who has established himself as a starter in the NFL. Those deals don't happen often enough to provide a gauge for what's a good return. Making matters more difficult was the public nature of the trade talks, which seemed to back the Broncos into a corner.

Given all of that context, Broncos GM Brian Xanders did very well for himself on Thursday.