Brady Quinn is about to watch a football game from a vantage point he has not known in four years, and then it was only briefly.
Quinn became the starting quarterback at Notre Dame with nine games left in his freshman year and he remained the starter until completing a sensational college career last fall. But come Sunday when the Browns break open the 2007 season against the Steelers in Cleveland Browns Stadium, the rookie first-round draft choice will be on the sideline along with Derek Anderson as the two quarterbacks watch Charlie Frye try to break the Steelers' jinx over the Browns.
Whether Quinn will be listed as the backup or as the third quarterback is a secret Coach Romeo Crennel plans to keep until Sunday morning.
"It will be tough," Quinn admitted. "It was tough in the preseason not even playing in the first game. After that, this will be a little easier. I just have to be in the mindset of helping the team any way I can to prepare Charlie and the defense and myself for certain situations."
When Quinn says he is preparing the defense it means he will run the scout team in practice. That is also very foreign to him. Often, the scout team quarterback is someone who is a starter only as an occasional fill-in, but some day, and that will be a day in the not-distant future, Quinn will be the quarterback for the Browns.
During his last two seasons at Notre Dame, as he was establishing himself as one of the premier college quarterbacks in the country, Quinn threw 69 touchdown passes and only 14 interceptions. He had the benefit of playing for former Patriots offensive coordinator Charlie Weis in a pro-style offense, so missing 16 practices at the start of training camp did not hurt him as much as it might have stunted another rookie's growth.
Interestingly, one reason Quinn improved as rapidly as he did is his close friendship with Ken Dorsey, who until Saturday was the Browns' fourth quarterback. Dorsey was released in the final cuts because the decision was made the Browns did not have the luxury of keeping four quarterbacks.
"He was a mentor and a friend," Quinn said. "He helped me here and off the field dealing with things.
"You couldn't meet a better teammate or person. I hope (the Browns re-sign Dorsey). I think that's something we need. That's invaluable. You can't put a price on what he brought to the table."
Dorsey, a seventh-round draft choice by the 49ers in 2003, was in San Francisco for three seasons. The Browns acquired him last year along with a seventh-round pick for Trent Dilfer.
Dorsey was 38-2 and won a National Championship while playing with the Miami Hurricanes, yet he appeared in only 13 NFL games - 12 with the 49ers and one with the Browns. He was 2-8 as a starter for the 49ers. He threw one incomplete pass in his brief appearance with the Browns.
