It's just been reported that Cleveland signed Graham Harrell. I thought I read last night that Dallas signed him; must have been sleepy. So... You've got Derek Anderson, a starting quarterback with flashes of brilliance, stretches of mediocrity. Behind him, Brady Quinn, whom the previous administration brought in. Brett Ratliff, a quarterback with arguably more promise than the overpaid Quinn, whom Mangini himself developed. And a practice squad project in Harrell. Anderson or Quinn must go. They simply must. They have way too much money tied up at quarterback to simply keep both on the roster, especially since Brett Ratliff might have emerged at the end of Jets training camp as a starter. Likely after the preseason games but before the regular season, some NFL team besides the Browns are going to have Quinn or Anderson starting for them. My guess? Minnesota, who have stood pat and missed out on quarterback after quarterback these last two years, will offer peanuts and the Browns will be obliged to accept.
Saying that Brett Ratliff has more promise than Brady Quinn is fucking retarded... You need to add Ratliff to the "practice squad" projects list behind Harrell.
Yeah for real. Ratliff had a good preseason and he all of a sudden has loads of potential. I just don't get that... We've seen a ton of bums tear up 3rd string D's in preseason.
Yeah, I'm not sure where the "Ratliff is better than Quinn" approach comes from. I do agree, however, that Cleveland seeks to trade one of their top 2 QBs this year or next. As soon as Ratliff headed to the Browns, I said "Well, Mangini just got his long term backup. Bye bye Brady or Derek."
Ratliff is probably making around 500k/year. His salary is negligible in CLE's decision about QB's on the roster.
to be honest, its not a bad QB situation out there in Cleveland. 1 of those 4 players has to turn out to be pretty good.
No, it's not bad. I just think they get their starter figured out quickly and keep Ratliff and Harrell as backups. It's not a monetary thing, it's a practical matter of value. They'll get something back for either Quinn or Anderson.
And his two "claim to fame" plays (those 50+ yard TD bombs) were made possible thanks to a ridiculously wide open Clowney on both occasions. No one seems to remember that part. If anybody should be getting the hype, it's Clowney, not Ratliff.
Ratliff's whole preseason was good, not just those two throws. He led a game winning drive capped with a TD pass, I'm pretty sure. If he had played against first stringers and failed, then the "he hasn't played anyone" argument might hold up better, but that's not the case. I mean I don't know how good he is or could be, but he certainly showed himself well when he was in there, which is all he can do. Between him and Clemens I saw more to like in Ratliff in a lot less time. Either way, not our situation to worry about anymore.
