CLEVELAND -- Derek Anderson got it -- even though he did not do it.
But after absorbing a 28-10 smacking from Dallas here on Sunday, the Browns offense is in full refurbish mode.
Better to refurbish than rebuild.
Tom Brady's knee injury and likely premature ending to his season has heads twirling in New England and across the league. Brodie Croyle's bum shoulder means Kansas City's youth plans at quarterback are temporarily squashed. Vince Young's injured knee and mind games give Tennessee pause.
Injuries were not the only quarterback issues in Week 1.
Carson Palmer threw for 99 yards in the loss at Baltimore. He managed a 35.2 passer rating. That is inexplicable for a quarterback with his skills. Matt Schaub was a fixture of the Houston collapse in Pittsburgh. Now Schaub is 4-8 in starts with the Texans.
Miami's Chad Pennington threw an ugly pick against the Jets with the game concluding and victory in reach. David Garrard tossed two interceptions in losing to the Titans, remarkable considering that he threw only three in 325 pass attempts last season. Marc Bulger watched the Eagles complete passes of 47, 52 and 90 yards, the last one for a touchdown. But his longest completion was for only 31 yards and the only points the Rams scored came on a field goal with 9 minutes left. That made it a 38-3 loss. That made Rams coach Scott Linehan 7-21 in his last 28 games.
And gallant Peyton Manning looked gassed all night against Chicago in leading his team to only 13 points and Indy's first September or October loss after winning 21 straight in those months.
The line goes that quarterbacks gain too much blame when things go wrong and too much praise when things go right.
One week into the season, we've got a hefty, league-wide quarterback fuss and flux.
The league opened the season with 12 different starting quarterbacks among the 32 who started opening day last season. Through this group's first 10 games, they were 6-4.
Two rookies -- Atlanta's Matt Ryan and Baltimore's Joe Flacco -- won on opening day for the first time since 1971 when Jim Plunkett (New England) and Archie Manning (New Orleans) did it. Seasoned standbys, including Donovan McNabb, Brett Favre and Kurt Warner, exhibited nerve in victory.
What the Patriots in particular, and the Chiefs and Titans to some degree, are feeling this morning is not new to Carolina. A year ago the Panthers were 2-1 and quarterback Jake Delhomme had tossed eight touchdown passes compared with one interception. Like Brady, Delhomme suffered an early season-ending injury. This one, an elbow injury, came in Week 3 at Atlanta.
Carolina was 5-8 without Delhomme and finished 7-9. In eight of the 13 games without him the Panthers scored 13 or fewer points. In five of those games they scored only seven or fewer.
"The quarterback is a large part of it for any team and in most cases he is the most important player," Carolina general manager Marty Hurney said. "From experience, when you lose him you have to not only get your backup ready but you have to work on the confidence of the rest of the team. It is so much more than just replacing that one guy."
Carolina knows this well.
This team is the quintessential example of what it means to have the quarterback you count on.
There is not a grittier or classier quarterback in the league than Delhomme.
From 1997 through 1999, this undrafted quarterback was signed and cut by New Orleans seven times. Carolina grabbed him as a free agent in 2003. Along with Kurt Warner, Delhomme is the only undrafted, free-agent quarterback to reach a Super Bowl.
There is an unmistakable, likeable spirit about him that is genuine. A rough-and-tumble approach that is undeniable. A commonness that is engaging.
Everybody talks about his guts and heart.
It is time to talk about his talent.
"He brings so much to the team with his intangibles," Hurney said. "He is a leader, everything you want in a player. He is the quintessential team guy and his teammates know it and feel it. But he is also just an excellent quarterback. He has command of what he does. On the final play, the snap was high. He got it. He pump faked; that worked to perfection. He put the ball right where it needed to be under great pressure. That's not just a hard-working, gutsy leader. That's a talented quarterback."
And an appreciative one.
Delhomme talked afterward about how lucky he is, how much he missed football last season and how much more he appreciates it now. He said he plays the game now not worrying about messing things up or delivering under pressure or letting his teammates down. He is playing now what he calls a "kid's game."
What the Panthers experienced, the Patriots and others to a lesser degree now face. Carolina knows it could happen to them again on any single play in any single game. But for now, Delhomme is healthy. And hot. A fractured, in-fighting team (receiver Steve Smith vs. cornerback Ken Lucas) in training camp took a huge step at healing deep wounds.
Foremost, NFL teams require a ton of wondrous luck in health at quarterback to be a factor.
And then a touch more of what Delhomme provides for the Panthers.
"He is determined and perseverance defines him," Hurney said. "He never quits coming at you. He never says never."
