The Browns might have a Drew Brees/Philip Rivers situation with their quarterbacks. Brady Quinn signed late, you'll remember, and it turns out that Derek Anderson is better than anyone realized, directing wins over Baltimore and Cincinnati. And while Cleveland didn't win in New England Sunday, 22 first downs and 287 passing yards isn't bad against a team that's been steamrolling everyone. Keep in mind Romeo Crennel is coaching for his job — he has no incentive to prematurely turn the season into a lab experiment — and you get the idea the Quinn Era might have to wait until December, if not next year. Fantasy owners tied to Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow want to see Anderson stick as long as possible, of course; while Quinn has a higher upside down the road, rookie quarterbacks are poor fantasy bets when they're asked to play in Season 1. ...

I'm as big on Joseph Addai as anyone, but Kenton Keith's rampage through the Buccaneers reminds us that the system makes the backfield star in Indianapolis, not the other way around. The second chapter of the Edgerrin James story — after the knee blowouts — was all about finesse and running lanes, not power. ...

The Lions offense normally puts up plenty of yards and points, but even on its good days there will be negative plays here — most fantasy defenses are worth using in this spot. Washington's defense is more of a coverage unit than an attack scheme, and still the Redskins collected five sacks, two interceptions, a safety, and a defensive touchdown against Jon Kitna and company Sunday. ...

Patriots fans probably get a little nauseous when Tom Brady is throwing late in the fourth quarter, but fantasy players will take the extra numbers. It's almost like Bill Belichick is coaching with a huge chip on his shoulder, looking to pound the opposition as emphatically as possible as a post-script to Camera-Gate. New England attempted a fourth-down pass inside of a minute in Sunday's win. ...

When scouting for a fill-in kicker or defense during the bye weeks, check with the favored teams first. Production at these positions is generally boosted by winning situations; teams trailing in the fourth quarter don't get a lot of sacks or field-goal attempts. ...

Quick hits: How many Steve McNair passes does it take to cross the road? The hobblin' Raven got just 5 yards per attempt at San Francisco. ... Shaun Alexander is slower than dial-up Internet. His days as a true difference-maker are done for good. ... The hip-hop community in Miami must have loved the Ted Ginn/Cleo Lemon hookup, rolling with Ginn and Juice. ... Matt Leinart's broken collarbone clearly upgrades the entire Arizona offense immediately — Kurt Warner is a better fit for the offense, and he's processing information much faster than the second-year lefty. The Cardinals also have a cushy upcoming schedule against the pass. ... In a nutshell, Dwayne Bowe is this year's Marques Colston. Bowe certainly doesn't have the ideal set-up Colston did, but Bowe is faster and stronger, and a better long-term commodity. ... Owen Daniels wasn't used much in Week 1, but he's been dynamite since (23 catches, 269 yards). The Texans can't stop raving about the second-year tight end. ... Maurice Jones-Drew owners can exhale now. But don't get too content — Greg Jones was stealing short-yardage and fourth-quarter touches in the win at Kansas City. It matters not that Jones is an ordinary, disposable back — if the Jaguars trust him in this role, it's going to take away from Fred Taylor and MJD. ... It might be too late to talk Larry Johnson owners off the ledge. But he will run well against Cincinnati and Oakland the next two weeks, book it. ... At first glance LenDale White and Chris Brown both had the same forgettable day Sunday, but keep in mind Brown added a TD to his line (scoring without much blocking), and White lost a fumble, his second of the year. ... Was Cam Cameron playing Psychology 101 with Ronnie Brown in the summer, or was the new head coach wearing his Mr. Magoo glasses? Hard to say, but Brown has finally ended all the silly talk about a platoon with Jesse Chatman (out of football last year). ... Ike Hilliard's rejuvenation takes a slice of Joey Galloway's fantasy value, notable when you consider that the Bucs don't want to throw the ball more than 25 times a week if they don't have to. Even in Sunday's blowout loss at Indy, the Bucs chucked it just 27 times. Tampa Bay also has a stud talent in tight end Alex Smith, though he's criminally underused at times.

— David Ferris has been writing about fantasy sports for various Web sites and newspapers since 1992.