Browns quarterback Brady Quinn underwent surgery on his right index finger Wednesday morning and he hopes to begin throwing sometime after the pins are removed in mid-January.

"In six weeks, once the pins are out, we'll start a minor rehab program," he said on a conference call from Alabama. "I should be able to throw sometime soon after that. That's the timeframe we're looking at right now."

Quinn said he was knocked out during the surgery performed by hand specialist Dr. Thomas Hunt. Quinn said he doesn't know exactly what it entailed, but it's his understanding that two pins were inserted into the finger to repair the damaged extensor tendon and move the bone chip back into place.

"Obviously they expect a full recovery," he said.

He said a cast on the hand is expected to be removed in a week. He said he'll return to Cleveland on Thursday in hopes of traveling with the team to Tennessee on Saturday.

He said he sought several opinions and the surgery "was something I felt pretty strongly about. I talked it over with my family and we didn't want to have any doubt. We wanted to make sure it was set correctly and could heal correctly."

Quinn broke the finger in Buffalo on Nov. 17 and then further damaged it the following week in a 16-6 loss to Houston.

A week later, Quinn watched in streetclothes as Derek Anderson went down for the season with a torn knee ligament in a loss to the Colts, leaving Ken Dorsey the starter.

"It's kind of been the tale of the season," said Quinn. "We've not only been battling through injuries, we haven't put together a lot of consistency in our play across the board."

But Quinn is confident Dorsey, who's almost been like another assistant coach to him, will do fine against the 11-1 Titans.

"Ken Dorsey is a baller," said Quinn. "He didn't win all those games in college for no reason. I expect him to be one of the best prepared quarterbacks in the league, and I'm looking for him to throw up some big numbers. Hopefully, he'll lead our team to a win."

Bruce almighty: Bruce Gradkowski, the Browns' new No. 2 quarterback, actually has more victories and touchdown passes than Dorsey.

Gradkowski, a sixth-round pick out of Toledo in 2006 by Tampa Bay, started 11 games and played in 13 there as a rookie, going 3-9 with nine touchdowns and nine interceptions. His career rating is 65.0.

Dorsey, who will start Sunday against the Titans, played on some horrible San Francisco teams and went 2-8 as a starter with eight touchdowns and 11 interceptions en route to a 63.5 rating. In Dorsey's two final seasons there, the 49ers went 6-26.

Gradkowski spent the 2008 training camp with the Rams, but was waived in the final cut.

"We felt like we needed somebody that had actually played in an NFL game, and Bruce has played in several of them and has won a couple," said coach Romeo Crennel. "Plus, the Rams' terminology is similar to ours."

"I'm confident I'll be able to pick this system up pretty quickly," said Gradkowski. "All the coaches are doing a great job of helping me out. Ken knows this offense like the back of his hand. I'm just trying to lean on those guys and grab as much as I can."

Crennel on Cribbs at QB: Crennel didn't sound too keen on the idea of playing Josh Cribbs a lot at quarterback.

"Last week we had an emergency package ready for him and this week we'll have a package ready for him," he said.

Injury report: Tight end Darnell Dinkins (high ankle sprain) was limited Wednesday. The following players didn't practice: Charles Ali (ribs), Beau Bell (knee), Shaun Smith (calf), Syndric Steptoe (ankle), Corey Williams (shoulder, laceration) and Kellen Winslow (ankle).

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: mcabot@plaind.com, 216-999-4670