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Derek Anderson: The NFL’s 12th Best QB?

From the ol’ “it may only be interesting to me and some of you” files is an interesting article on ESPN.com in which the website’s scouts rank the top 64 quarterbacks in the league right now. Yes, both Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn made the list.

 The rankings were set up with both a QB’s body of work throughout his career, current season, and potential future all in mind. The latter portion is what put rookie Brady Quinn just one slot behind fellow rookie JaMarcus Russell of Oakland at 37th.

Sadly, third stringer got lost in the shuffle and didn’t make the cut. However ladies, Brady’s Fathead is currently on sale…and he’s the only Browns player available [sigh].

What really interested me is where Derek Anderson was ranked and who he was above/below on the list. After all, the guy is due for a new contract in the near future and though this list isn’t exactly done by the guys at NASA (let alone current NFL GM’s), it may be helpful anyway in forecasting potential parameters in his next contract.

In the list Anderson is ranked 12th. The two quarterbacks ahead of him are Jacksonville’s David Garrard and Denver’s David Cutler  at 10th and 11th respectively. What’s really interesting is who is right behind Anderson. St. Louis’ Marc Bulger is 13th, Tennessee’s Vince Young is 15th, San Diego’s Phillip Rivers is 16th, and New York’s Eli Manning is 17th.

Aside from Garrard, who is due a big payday himself in the future, all of these players are making some big money. All but Bulger are top half first round picks in their rookie contracts still. Marc Bulger just signed a $60 million dollar extension prior to the start of this season. For the record, Bulger was 30 when he signed his deal, while Anderson is only 24 by comparison.

Obviously, this list pays a lot of respect to the fact that Anderson is having a big year this year. Throw in the fact that the Browns have a strong supporting cast that could feature as many as four pro-bowlers this year and it is pretty easy to see why the scouts would also favor Anderson’s future as well. Those four potential pro-bowlers are left tackle Joe Thomas, guard Eric Steinbach, tight end Kellen Winslow, and wide-out Braylon Edwards.

Besides Derek Anderson, the happiest guy to see this list is likely Derek’s agent David Dunn. Sure he’s currently suspended by the NFL at the moment, but try letting that stop him from getting his man at least $60 million from either the Browns or somewhere else in the next year or two.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 at 11:02 pm and is filed under Columns. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.