BRADY QUINN’S STORYLINE
Keyshawn Johnson on Adrian Peterson and Brady Quinn:
“If I’m Adrian Peterson or Brady Quinn, I’m not so much worried about where I’m going to go right now. A lot of times people worry about going in the first round or high pick because of the dollars. And that makes sense if you want to do some things financially. But it is always better to go to the right place and be with the right team. As we know, in this league, if you go too high and you get cut, everybody is going to deem you a bust. I look for Adrian Peterson to, maybe, go to Minnesota.”
Mel Kiper and Steve Young on Miami selecting Ted Ginn Jr. over Brady Quinn at No. 9:
Mel Kiper: “In a word, ridiculous. This guy falls into your lap and you’re the Miami Dolphins, you don’t have to trade up for him, he’s there at nine. 1983, Dan Marino fell into your lap towards the end of the first round, you took him. Miami Dolphins, needing a young quarterback, if they get Trent Green, fine, but he’s an aging quarterback. You get a chance to get Brady Quinn, at No. 9, and you pass on him for Ted Ginn, coming off a foot injury – not real polished as a wide receiver – you got to be kidding me.”
Young: “Who is going to come to Miami and go in front of that statue of Dan Marino for his whole career and stand up to it and be the guy that’s going to be a career guy in Miami? You have to have a special guy. This is that kind of a kid, I’m shocked.”
On Commissioner Roger Goodell’s decision to move Brady Quinn away from the green room as teams kept selecting other players in the Draft
MNF’s Tony Kornheiser: “I think that’s merciful. I think that’s what a dad might do. The right move.”
Flurry of comments as Cleveland traded up with Dallas to select Quinn at No. 22
Chris Berman (with fans in Radio City Music Hall in a standing ovation for Cleveland’s pick): “Sometimes stories take a long time to have a happy ending. This truly became a bedtime story for Brady Quinn. But in the end, a pleasant one … It is his hometown team.”
Johnson: “They (Cleveland) also played their cards right. Now they have a guy that’s from the Midwest, the coaches being together, they’ve got receivers, they’ve got a tight end, and they’ve got the Golden Boy. Everything just worked out wonderful for them.”
Kiper: “(Cleveland GM) Phil Savage, finally some luck going the Browns way. They’ve had terrible luck on the injury front, now they get some good luck on draft day, when Miami passes on Brady Quinn.
“… It worked good for Cincinnati back in 1984 when Boomer Esiason fell in their lap and it works great for the Cleveland Browns today. You’re thinking about a guy at pick No. 3 and you get him at pick No. 22 all because of one team – the Miami Dolphins, pretty amazing.”
Berman: “So a young man that wore the jersey at four years old, now is going to wear it at 22 years old.”
Kornheiser: “I think that’s a great ending for his terrible, terrible day at this point. There was an ovation in this room unlike anything else all day … He became the most sympathetic figure in this Draft. When he walked out there, he got a standing ovation. A lot of people don’t like Notre Dame and they have nothing with Cleveland. On a real level, Brady Quinn won the day.”
MNF’s Mike Tirico: “Outside of South Bend, the Notre Dame quarterback is not a sympathetic figure.”
MNF’s Ron Jaworski: “I had to pull my notes out as the day was going on. Here are some of my notes on Brady Quinn. ‘Handled adversity well – mental toughness.’ Boy, did that come to the forefront here today. He was really put to the test and he did handle it very well. He can also play the quarterback position very well. He’s been under the microscope at Notre Dame for four years. We all know he can throw the football very well. There’s been a little bit of knock on his accuracy and he is a little bit inconsistent, but I studied Brady Quinn, he’s not afraid to make the tough throw.” (Then a Xs and Os breakdown of Quinn’s ability to make the ‘seam’ throw)
ON WASHINGTON REDSKINS
Monday Night Football’s Kornheiser and Jaworski before the Redskins selected safety LaRon Landry with the sixth pick:
Kornheiser: “Everybody expects them (Redskins) to do pretty much what they’ve done the last couple of years totrade this pick for three or four coordinators, because they are still stocking coordinators. The way they brought Joe Gibbs back, maybe bring Sonny Jurgensen back or somebody like that to handle this.”
Jaworski: “They’ve got to look at it on the other side of the football. Greg Williams is an outstanding defensive coordinator. He loves guys that play smart – very complex sophisticated defensive system. They are looking for a defensive guy that is intelligent … I am looking at safety. How about LaRon Landry, that sounds good Tony?”
Kornheiser: “What the Redskins do great is in February, in March and April, as they set their team up by getting very very high-priced, well-known guys and those are the promises that, later in the Fall, do not necessarily come through. But they look great, usually by now.”
Johnson on Peterson:
“What team doesn’t have two running backs? We have two, the Dallas Cowboys have two and, with this guy, he’s going to help Chester Taylor … They can get a receiver in the later rounds because this is a deep draft for wide receiver … On turf, I’m scared of this guy.”
Chris Berman on Peterson:
“One of the scouts that I talked to this past couple weeks described him, and I wrote it down in capitals on my sheet: Violent runner, a violent runner … Minnesota gets what they hope will be a home run on the ground.”
Kiper on quarterback JaMarcus Russell (No. 1 pick):
“JaMarcus Russell is going to immediately energize that Raider nation, that fan base, that football team on that practice field and in that locker room. Three years from now you could be looking at a guy who is certainly one of the elite top five quarterbacks in this league.
“… When you look at the difference between Brady Quinn and JaMarcus Russell, everybody said it is the superior physical ability.
“Brady Quinn is a big guy. Nobody has an arm like JaMarcus Russell. The skill level he has is certainly John Elway-like.”
Young on No. 2 pick Calvin Johnson:
“In Calvin Johnson, you have the body type of Terrell Owens, you have the ability at the long ball of Randy Moss and then you have the character and work ethic – and I hate to say this, because I played with him for many years – of Jerry Rice. This is that type of a kid.”
Chris Mortensen before Cleveland Brown selected OT Joe Thomas with pick No. 3:
“I see Phil Savage, the general manager of the Cleveland Browns, going with what people think might be the safest pick next to Calvin Johnson in this draft. That could be Joe Thomas, tackle, Wisconsin.
“Remember, Savage was the personnel director in Baltimore whenthey selected Jonathan Ogden, tackle, when everybody else in the world said go offense, go offense, go offense, and oh, by the way, that paid off for the Baltimore franchise. This could pay off if they go with Thomas, even though nobody certainly is going to blame them for taking the quarterback or the running back.”
On Joe Thomas’ decision to go fishing with his Dad:
Kornheiser: “Speaking with Jaws (Jaworski), we’re thrilled that the kid went fishing with his dad. There’s a lot of criticism that you need to be in New York for the Draft. I don’t know how many chances you get, once you’re drafted, to go fishing with your dad. I thought it was a wonderful gesture on his part … By the way, I think it’ll make him more money because linemen, people don’t know linemen, and people are going to know this kid.”
