Will D.A. return to haunt the Browns?

CLEVELAND - Call it a money thing.  Call it a new beginning by a new team president and general manager who want to put their own stamp on the team.  Call it what you want.  Derek Anderson is a Cleveland Brown no more.

The Browns ended the four year D.A. experiment on Tuesday, releasing the 26 year old quarterback.  He would have been owed a $2 million roster bonus later this month.  Now he's free to sign with any other NFL team.  So who might be interested in a young, veteran quarterback, with starting experience, but whose on-field performances have been as unpredictable as the weather in Cleveland?

Actually, many teams.  Just think about it for a moment.  A handful of teams are in desperate need for a starting QB.  Double that for teams looking for a back-up with starting experience.

Where D.A. could land as a starting QB:

• Carolina:  The Panthers cut Jake Delhomme.  Matt Moore is their only choice right now.
• St. Louis:  The Rams are done with Marc Bulger, but they could go the route of drafting a QB in the first round of the draft and throwing him to the wolves.
• Arizona:  Two seasons removed from the Super Bowl, Kurt Warner has retired, and Matt Leinart still might be more concerned with which Hollywood hottie he's dating.
• Oakland:  The Raiders are a pure mess.  It does appear they've given up on JaMarcus Russell and will go with former Brown Bruce Gradkowski.  D.A. beat out Gradkowski here, why not there? 
• Buffalo:  Could D.A. compete with Tyler Thigpen for the starting job?

Teams that could use Anderson as a back-up:

• Washington:  You can't tell me new 'Skins coach Mike Shanahan wants Jason Campbell as his only option?
• Seattle:  Now that Seneca Wallace is a Brown, someone has to back-up the aging Matt Hasselbeck.
• Detroit:  Matt Stafford played well in his rookie season on a horrible team, and Dante Culpepper's too old to be a starter should something happen to the Lions' future.
• Baltimore:  Joe Flacco's the man.  But Troy Smith wants out.  If he leaves, someone has to hold the clipboard.
• Pittsburgh:  Yep.  You're reading this correctly.  The Steelers must seriously consider an experienced back-up.  Dennis Dixon started just two games when Ben Roethlisberger got hurt last season.  Plus, if there's ANY truth to the alleged Roethlisberger sex assault, then the Steelers need options.  The Rooneys don't play games when it comes to player conduct, two Super Bowl rings or not.  The NFL could level some sort of suspension on Roethlisberger at the end of this thing.

Wouldn't that just be Cleveland luck?  The guy they cut signs with their hated rivals, comes back to town in the future and beats them on the same field where he played so inconsistently.  Maybe.  Maybe not.  But only if Cleveland's luck changes.