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Former Browns QB Derek Anderson confident Ken Dorsey will excel as offensive coordinator
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- Former Browns QB Derek Anderson confident Ken Dorsey will excel as offensive coordinator
Ken Dorsey was the new kid in the quarterback room for the Browns when Derek Anderson first met him.
The Browns had just traded Trent Dilfer to the San Francisco 49ers in May, 2006. Cleveland got back a third-round pick and Dorsey , a quarterback who'd played in 11 games with 10 starts in his three season in the Bay Area.
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Anderson was still backing up Charlie Frye at the time. However, in Dorsey — like him, a West Coast native — the big-armed quarterback found a sounding board.
"He got there and he really became a guy that I just felt comfortable bouncing things off," Anderson recalled Tuesday in a interview with the Beacon Journal from his Scottsdale, Ariz., home. "In the meetings and stuff, he brought up tons of good points, and as kind of the offseason progressed, I realized he was a great resource for me. (Then-quarterbacks coach Rob Chudzinski) encouraged it and he helped me a ton in the offseason studies and just things that we were doing and I really was fond of what he was telling me."
If you're looking for the origin story for Dorsey's rise from NFL backup quarterback to quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, it might as well start in the three seasons he spent as the Browns' No. 3 quarterback. Now, 16 years after he last played in Cleveland, Dorsey is returning there to be its new offensive coordinator .
Cleveland Browns quarterbacks Ken Dorsey (11), Brady Quinn, second from left and Derek Anderson, right, huddle with coach Rip Scherer during an NFL pre-season football game against the New York Jets Thursday, Aug. 7, 2008, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan)
At multiple steps along the journey, Anderson has been there as well. He was already with the Carolina Panthers in 2013 when Dorsey was hired as the quarterbacks coach, his first NFL coaching job.
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Likewise, when Dorsey was hired by the Buffalo Bills in 2019 as the quarterbacks coach, Anderson was on the roster. He would eventually retire before that season began.
"Obviously we played together and had a great relationship there, and then he became my coach in Carolina partly because they came to me was like, 'Hey, how do you feel about this?,'" Anderson said. "'I'm like, dude, it's fine. He's a buddy but he's got a great brain and I really think he can help (then-Panthers starting quarterback) Cam (Newton).' It's kind of the same thing in Buffalo, when I was there before he came in."
What happened to the Buffalo Bills after Ken Dorsey was fired as offensive coordinator
The Dorsey who comes back to Cleveland is coming off a career disappointment, having been fired 10 games into his second season as the Buffalo Bills' offensive coordinator. Buffalo's offense was ranked seventh in the league in total yards, seventh in passing yards, eighth in points scored and 13th in rushing, but had not scored more than 25 points in a six-game stretch in which they were 2-4.
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Anderson points out how the Buffalo defense was an area which actually improved the most after the firing. The Bills went from 17th in total yards (330.6) to ninth (307.2), 19th against the run (115.2) to 15th (110.6), 12th against the pass (215.4) to seventh (196.6) and 12th in third-down efficiency (41.8%) to 19th (38.6).
Sep 8, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton (1) and quarterback Derek Anderson (3) with quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos defeated the Panthers 21-20. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
"I think it was an easy out," Anderson said of the firing. "I didn't love it at the time, but I totally understand it. I understand the dynamics of what goes on in the league, and sometimes that's an easy out for an organization or a coach. It worked out for Buffalo and Joe came in and called great games and it all kind of came together. But do I think that if they keep Ken, do they come out of that slump and they continue to play? I do. I think that nothing would've changed and everything would've probably been fine."
Anderson believes what he's seen out of Dorsey, particularly what he's seen in person playing for him, backs up those feelings. It's specifically what he can do for quarterbacks, which is what the Browns are hoping for as well with Deshaun Watson entering the third year of his contract.
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How Ken Dorsey helped Cam Newton , Josh Allen become top NFL quarterbacks
Dorsey helped Newton blossom into the NFL's Most Valuable Player in 2015. The former No. 1 overall pick posted a 99.4 passer rating and 35 touchdown passes, both career highs, while guiding the Panthers to the Super Bowl.
Once Dorsey got to Buffalo, he helped Josh Allen take a similar step forward after his 2018 rookie season. It's started with a six-point improvement in Allen's completion percentage from his rookie season in that first year working with Dorsey, then a third season in which he was MVP runner-up with career highs in completion percentage (69.2%), yards (4,544 yards), touchdown passes (37) and passer rating (107.2). He also had his lowest interception percentage at 1.7%.
"It starts with your understanding of your offense, where your eyes need to be, your progressions, all of those things," Anderson said. "Especially for guys like Cam, Josh, Deshaun, guys that can rely on their legs but also can throw the ball quite well. They tend to get out of the reads quick knowing that they can make a play with their legs.
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"But I think where Ken really helped Cam was obviously his preparation, understanding the defense, knowing when to get the ball out of his hands and then go be an athlete. Just understanding the timing of the play and then go be an athlete, right? It's not always drop back, 'Oh, they're automatically in man coverage, I'm taking it down and running it.'"
How Ken Dorsey and Deshaun Watson will fit together with the Browns
Which leads back to Dorsey's newest challenge as the Browns' offensive coordinator. Specifically, it leads to Watson, whose skill set in both similar yet different than either Newton or Allen.
For one thing, Watson's isn't quite a physically big as either Newton or Allen. The other thing is that Watson has never been quite the focal point of a team's running game the way both Newton and Allen have been at times in their careers.
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However, Anderson has followed what Watson's done in his 12 starts with the Browns over the last two seasons. He believes Dorsey can help unlock the old version of Watson the Browns need him to be this season.
"The limited amount of time that Deshaun has played, I would say that recently he's not really playing quarterback," Anderson said. "He's throwing to the first guy, and then running around and trying to make plays with his legs. It's imperative that he gets back to getting through his progressions and playing football like I think most people around the league know he can."
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: New Browns coordinator Ken Dorsey gets endorsement from Derek Anderson
