Frye has bad day, but rival is better

Derek Anderson replaced Charlie Frye at QB, and may be starter next game.

By JOE SCALZO

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

CLEVELAND — As a crowd of reporters gathered around Browns quarterback Charlie Frye’s locker following Sunday’s game, Brady Quinn stood off to the right, just over Frye’s shoulder, getting dressed.

It was hard to miss the symbolism.

Frye lasted just 11⁄2 quarters against the Steelers before giving way to backup Derek Anderson, a move he neither complained about nor argued with following the game.

“D.A. provided a spark; I’m not going to be bitter about it or anything like that,” said Frye, who completed just 4 of 10 passes for 34 yards and an interception for a 10.0 quarterback rating. “Obviously, I need to get better. That’s pretty clear.”

Anderson was a little better, completing 13 of 28 passes for 184 yards and a 65.2 rating over the final 21⁄2 quarters. He led the Browns on their only scoring drive of the game, hitting fullback Lawrence Vickers for a 1-yard touchdown in the third quarter that cut the deficit to 24-7.

It capped a seven-play, 76-yard drive. Problem was, it probably shouldn’t have happened. On the first play of the drive, Anderson threw a pass over the middle, directly into the hands of linebacker James Farrior, who dropped it.

Anderson did look better

Anderson did look more poised and decisive, however, and it would be surprising if he didn’t get the start next week at home against Cincinnati.

When asked about it, Crennel said, “Well, they both need to play better and I don’t know yet. We have to go back and evaluate it.”

Anderson, like Frye, admitted he wasn’t at his best.

“I did some good things and, obviously, I made some mistakes,” said Anderson. “I thought I did a pretty good job of preparation. I prepare each week like I’m going to play.

“Obviously, this is not the way we wanted the season to start.”

Both quarterbacks avoided the question of who should start next week, offering identical “that’s the coaches’ decision” answers, which was also the answer wide receiver Braylon Edwards gave when asked about it.

“We’re going to support Charlie when he’s in there and we’re going to support D.A. when he’s in there,” Edwards said.

Some of the poor performance could be blamed on having a new offensive coordinator. Rob Chudzinski replaced Jeff Davidson in the offseason after Davidson replaced Maurice Carthon, who was fired (or resigned, depending on what you believe) in mid-season last year.

But Anderson and Frye both refused to use that as an excuse.

“I knew everything pretty well,” said Anderson. “But I have to execute the throws.”

Cleveland’s job doesn’t get any easier, with games against the Bengals, Ravens and Patriots looming over the next four weeks. And if Frye and Anderson don’t play better, the post-game crowd will shift to the guy who was standing a few feet to their right.

“We’ve got another division game to worry about,” said Frye. “I think in this league, each week is like a new beginning.”

scalzo@vindy.com