Ah yes, the quarterback situation. I’ve been laying off that topic for a while. After all, Coach Davis said on Sept. 22 that Kelly Holcomb was “day-to-day” with his “tiny hairline fracture of the non-weight-bearing fibula.” Remember that?

“I know there’s some report floating around town that (Kelly’s) got a major, busted ankle and he’s going to be out four-to-six weeks and it’s totally erroneous,” Davis said. “If he was going to be gone four-to-six weeks, trust me, I wouldn’t be telling you today and setting myself up for looking like a fool on Wednesday by coming back in here and telling you he’s going to be out four-to-six weeks.”

Yesterday, Davis announced that Tim Couch will almost certainly be starting his fourth straight game due to Holcomb’s injury.

As long as the team is winning and Couch is playing fairly well, Holcomb may never get back to 100%. There’s something to be said for going with the hot hand. And with two QBs as close in ability as Couch and Holcomb, either one of them completely healthy is preferable to the other at 90%.

As far as their performances this year, I’d have to grade Holcomb a C and Couch a B+ so far. But that’s not a final verdict, nor is it a predictor of future performance.

Of course, the major implication of this QB drama is what happens next year. Clearly, either Couch or Holcomb will be the starter, and the other one will be playing for some other team.

Couch is younger, has more long-term upside potential, and is a better overall athlete. Holcomb is smarter, has a quicker release, throws downfield better, and will play for less money.

It seems like the organization would like nothing better than to have Couch continue to play well, thereby justifying the huge financial and psychic investment they’ve made in him as the first overall pick of the reincarnated Browns franchise.

But Holcomb is more than just a motivational tool for Couch. He’s a skilled player, a team guy, and — like Couch — a gutsy competitor. Unless the Browns run the table and Couch consistently plays better than ever, Holcomb deserves to get back on the field when he’s ready. After all, Holcomb could still have several good years left, and the Browns could fill in a lot of holes (think offensive line and our aging safeties) with the salary cap space they’d free up without Couch.

It’s truly a fascinating dilemma. I don’t have any zealous feelings against either player. I wish the Browns could keep both of them indefinitely, but that’s not in the nature of the NFL business these days. And a platoon system, ala the Rams’ 1950’s Waterfield/Van Brocklin duo, is out of the question.

The best we Browns fans can hope for is that one of these players emerges as an elite NFL quarterback, sooner rather than later. That is, while he’s still wearing a Browns uniform. And for gravy, we get some sort of compensation when other one goes his merry way.