Derek Anderson finds pro game to be a business

By Kevin Hampton
Corvallis Gazette-Times

Derek Anderson lined up alongside a group of Oregon State football players in the Truax Indoor Center and loped down the field, his 6-foot-6 frame standing out.

Some at the winter workouts are former teammates, others are new to the program, but they all know Anderson as the record-setting former OSU quarterback now with the Cleveland Browns.

Anderson is back in town for the offseason and wanted to get some work in to keep in shape before he has to report to the first camps.

His first year in the NFL was a time for learning.

Anderson was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the sixth round of last year’s draft and got his share of snaps in the preseason, even tossing two touchdown passes to lead the Ravens to a win over the Washington Redskins.

A few weeks later, Anderson was on the waiver wire.

The Ravens reportedly were going to re-sign him to the practice squad, but the Cleveland Browns stepped in and grabbed him.

“It’s just a business, that’s the way it goes, being a third guy. Nothing’s ever guaranteed and that’s part of the deal,” Anderson said. “It was kind of hard, I was just getting used to guys. I had some pretty good friends in Baltimore and got used to them. I didn’t really fit in at first, but met some good guys and had some fun with it so far.”

In Cleveland, he was the number three quarterback behind starter Trent Dilfer and Charlie Frye.

Anderson did not play, but was able to take in the game first-hand. He also faced some of the toughest defensive personnel in the game in practice every day.

“It was solid,” he said. “It was a long season, a little longer than I’m used to, but it was a good experience and hopefully I’ll tap into what I learned this year being behind Dilfer and enjoying that experience. Hopefully, I’ll get a chance to get after it this year.”

Anderson was stunned by the speed of the players, particularly the defensive linemen. At Oregon State he was used to having a little more time to read the defense.

“The big guys are incredibly fast and the D-linemen can move a heck of a lot better,” he said. “That’s really it. Your reaction time has got to be a lot faster.”

The coaches worked with Anderson on making reads and developing better footwork. He said there was quite a bit of studying involved to get the playbook down.

It became even more difficult when he had to forget what he learned in Baltimore and switch to Cleveland’s system.

“It’s a complex game,” he said. “It’s a little more complex than the college game and the verbiage is a lot more than most guys are used to. Coach (Mike) Riley and coach (Dennis) Erickson used a lot of verbiage, so it wasn’t as difficult for me to catch on to.”

Anderson said his time in the NFL hasn’t changed him a bit. He plans to get married this July and buy a house in Oregon.

There’s money in the bank to do just that and the NFL makes sure all rookies go through a symposium to learn how to handle their finances.

“It’s just a little easier to pay the bills now,” Anderson said. “Just being smart with your money, it’s a big thing, because it’s not there forever.”

Anderson wants to get some playing time under his belt this season.

“I just want a chance to play and compete for a job and I think I’m going to get a chance this fall,” he said. “So I’m just going to prepare right now and go back there in a couple of weeks and get after it. It should be fun.”