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Brady Quinn Makes it Official: He's Not the Final Holdout

Matty Byloos |Aug 15,2007

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Brady Quinn Makes it Official: He's Not the Final Holdout

Quinn finally made it official yesterday, after agreeing to terms with the Cleveland Browns, who drafted the quarterback out of Notre Dame with their second first-round pick, and an overall number 22 selection. The terms of the contract remain somewhat unclear at this point, as Quinn was expected to arrive at Browns headquarters yesterday (Tuesday, August 7, 2007), after which it is anticipated that the terms of the five-year contract will be disclosed.

Quinn and his agent, Tom Condon, managed to hold out through eleven total days, during which time negotiations were in process, with both sides finding some sticking points. Through that delay, however, Quinn all but withdrew his potential plea for the season-opening starting jobs at quarterback. Sources have said that the numbers in the deal are still entirely unclear as language in the contract was still being worked out as of yesterday. The package has been estimated to be worth $20.2 million ($7.75 guaranteed), and could get as high as $30 million over the five years of the deal, when incentives are factored in. One major factor behind the holdout was supposedly based on clauses that guaranteed playing time for Quinn, in exchange for monetary incentives.

In the meantime, the Browns will most likely look to either quarterback Charlie Frye or Derek Anderson to start the season, with both players expected to take snaps. With only a couple of practices left to go before the Browns first preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday, it is not likely that Brady Quinn will be featured. Browns' head coach Romeo Crennel has been matter of fact about the Quinn situation, offering that the young rookie would be at the bottom of the quarterback list until he learned the system and could become competitive. The time frame on that development remains to be seen.

Quinn played and started at quarter back for the four years that he was at Notre Dame; some believe that his work and playing time under head coach Charlie Weis will put him in decent shape to come into camp late and pick up the professional system smoothly. It may not be such a stretch – after all, Weis and Crennel were both coordinators together in New England. After a senior year that did not include Quinn's best numbers, the quarterback's selection status dropped in the draft until finally the Browns traded the Cowboys (a first-round pick in the 2008 draft to), in order to land the rookie quarterback with the twenty-second spot. With this slide, so went Quinn's signing numbers, though the Browns were supposedly amenable to paying a quarterback premium.

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