What do Packers tackle Breno Giacomini and Browns quarterback Brady Quinn have in common — besides the first two letters of their names?

They were the only players who were in uniform, but did not step on the field Sunday during Green Bay’s 31-3 destruction of Cleveland.

While no one outside of Giacomini’s family cared about his inactivity, there were tens of thousands of fans at Cleveland Browns Stadium who expressed their anger about Quinn’s status.

But their pleas of “Brady, Brady, Brady” fell on deaf ears as Browns coach Eric Mangini stubbornly stuck with Derek Anderson under center.

“D.A. was our starter and I felt comfortable with the things we were doing,” the coach explained. “That was where my thought process was.”

If that’s the case, then it’s time for Mangini to do some more thinking.

Anderson was terrible against the Packers, giving him three poor outings and one passable one since being ordained Cleveland’s starter midway through a loss to Baltimore on Sept. 27.

The “Moose from Scappoose” was 12-of-29 for 99 yards and an interception, generating four passing first downs on 10 possessions while facing a Green Bay defense that resembles a Swiss cheesehead.

Yet Anderson’s teammates continue to stand behind him.

“People forget that D.A. was in the Pro Bowl a couple years ago. He’s still a great quarterback,” said wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi, who was targeted eight times but only had one reception on the sunny afternoon. “He’s still a guy that can make all the passes, and he’s shown that this season.”

No, Mohamed, he hasn’t.

In fact, Anderson’s 2009 performance rates among the worst in Browns history. His 40.6 passer rating is the lowest by a Cleveland quarterback in the post-merger era — putting him beneath the infamous Mike Phipps’ 46.7 in 1974 — while his .438 completion percentage is a throwback to the early days of the forward pass.

Anderson also has a dismal 2-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio and is only averaging 4.4 yards per throw. Quinn was unceremoniously benched with better stats across the board, including a 62.9 passer rating.

“Numbers don’t always tell the whole tale,” fullback Lawrence Vickers insisted. “(Anderson) did what we were asking of him.”

While the Browns’ players have no choice but to publicly back Mangini’s chosen one, the local press corps should be much more objective in their assessment of the QB situation.

Because Anderson has an endearing everyman quality to him, many media members have become his personal apologists, regardless of how many balls he bounces off the grass or flings directly out of bounds.

Quinn, on the other hand, can come across as slightly aloof at times and doesn’t go out of his way to exchange small talk. That appears to be the only reason anyone can justify favoring Anderson at this stage.

And for the record, Mangini may praise Anderson’s ability to stretch the field, but Cleveland is averaging 2.56 points per quarter with him, compared to 2.60 during Quinn’s abbreviated tenure.

“We aren’t good right now. That’s it, period, flat out,” Anderson said. “We haven’t executed. We haven’t done the right things to win ballgames.

“We haven’t run the ball effectively, thrown it where we needed to. We haven’t protected up front like we need to and caught it when we need to. You can’t win like that.”

On that point, there is no argument, just as there should be no question which quarterback starts next week for the Browns in Chicago.

Whether Quinn can be a quality pro remains to be seen, but there is plenty of evidence that Anderson will never be more than a mediocre one.

It’s time for the Browns — and their fans — to find out if their supposed quarterback of the future can play right now.

Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com.

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