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Coach says quarterbacks taking offseason seriously, fine-tuning their skills
By Marla Ridenour
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Published on Saturday, May 24, 2008
Derek Anderson is working on throwing to his left and on his touch — or lack thereof — on short passes.
Brady Quinn has changed his grip, which might remind some of Chris Palmer's first impression of Tim Couch.
This month's organized team activities and a three-day mandatory minicamp June 10-12 might lack the intensity of training camp, but Browns quarterbacks coach Rip Scherer said Anderson, Quinn and No. 3 quarterback Ken Dorsey are taking this offseason seriously.
''I've got the greatest quarterback room in the NFL,'' Scherer, also the assistant head coach, said Monday at the 28th annual Akron Browns Backers Banquet at Tangier restaurant. ''They're a lot easier than coaching college guys because they want to learn, they have an unbelievable work ethic, they work well together and they're so receptive to coaching.
''They'll do whatever you ask. The coach is still the coach, and I think they'll always be that way. Even if they're 15-year veterans, I think that's just part of their personality.''
Anderson, a three-year veteran picked up off waivers from Baltimore in 2005, went to the Pro Bowl in his first year as a starter. Taking over when Charlie Frye was traded to the Seattle Seahawks after a 34-7 season-opening loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Anderson led the Browns to a 10-6 record, one game shy of the playoffs.
The trip to Hawaii (as the AFC's first alternate) and throwing 29 touchdown passes, one shy of Brian Sipe's team mark, did not go to Anderson's head, however. In film review, he noticed a weakness throwing to his left and vowed to improve.
''It's not terrible, but I just need to get better,'' Anderson said.
''The two major things with him are opening up his hips and throwing to his left, and not changing his arm slot when he throws underneath throws,'' Scherer said of the 6-foot-6 Anderson.
''Release the ball at the same level, just take a little speed off of
it. Every day after practice he stays with me and works on those things.''
Anderson blew a chance to start in a training-camp battle with Frye last summer, when he failed to throw a touchdown pass in the preseason. Considering that, Scherer was not stunned by Anderson's success in '07.
''I know it may not sound very honest when I say no, but I'm not surprised,'' Scherer said. ''He has the ability; he has a way about him. He carries himself like a quarterback. He's got the primary tool; he can throw the football. He just had to exhibit that he could make good decisions, make better decisions. That's still part of the growth process. His learning curve will accelerate now having a year of experience behind him.''
In three years as a starter at Oregon State, Anderson threw 79 touchdowns and 57 interceptions. He totalled 19 interceptions last season, four in a loss at Cincinnati that doomed the Browns' playoff hopes.
Scherer said that bad day is just part of what motivates Anderson.
''I think he uses every incomplete pass he threw last year as motivation,'' Scherer said. ''You can't carry that and let it weigh you down, but you have to learn from it. I sense from him that he has a little bit of a chip on his shoulder. A good chip, not a negative chip.''
A restricted free agent, Anderson signed a three-year, $26 million contract on March 1 with $14.5 million guaranteed. After this season, the Browns will have to choose between him and Quinn, the former Notre Dame star picked 22nd overall in 2007. The Browns gave the Dallas Cowboys their first-round pick for this past draft to move up to select Quinn, who played only 11 snaps in the season finale against the San Francisco 49ers.
Scherer has not hesitated to work on Quinn's mechanics, even though he knows some of his peers don't believe in it. Scherer had more than 30 years of experience in the college ranks, including spending 1991-94 as coach at James Madison, before joining the Browns in 2005.
''A lot of pro coaches feel if a guy has been throwing a rock like that since he was 3, let's not fool around with it,'' Scherer said. ''The guys who pitch in the major leagues for 15 years still have pitching coaches working on their delivery, so I see it should be no different with a quarterback.
''Brady kind of gripped the ball a little bit more in the meat of the ball and we tried to move him up a lace or two, more toward the top end and keep him more balanced. Brady is as eager a learner as anybody, but all three of them are receptive.''
Palmer did similar work with Couch after the University of Kentucky quarterback was the first overall pick in 1999.
It seemed striking to Scherer that Anderson was mobbed by fans at Monday's banquet, where he was honored by the Cleveland chapter of the Pro Football Writers as the team's Player of the Year.
''I was standing there with my wife and said, 'A year ago he could have walked in here and nobody would have known who he was,' '' Scherer said. ''It's a credit to him and the work he has done.
''He's the same guy from Scappoose, Oregon, that he was when he walked in our building three years ago. A sincere guy, not affected by himself or his success. Does a real good job of managing and balancing things and staying focused and not getting all caught up in this. I can't say enough about him as a person as well as a quarterback.''
Scherer couldn't put a finger on anything that has changed about Anderson. Except, that is, for one little perk.
''He's been invited to more golf tournaments,'' Scherer said.
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Read her Browns blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/browns/.
Derek Anderson is working on throwing to his left and on his touch — or lack thereof — on short passes.
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