By SCOTT PETRAK

Staff Writer

BEREA — Wherever Brady Quinn turned, the NFL Network cameras were already there. He stretched and they filmed. He jogged and they taped. He threw warm-up passes and they recorded.

All the attention would’ve been enough to fray the nerves of most 24-year-olds making their first NFL start. Not Quinn.

Not in his starting debut last Thursday night. Not when he makes start No. 2 on “Monday Night Football.”

“It feels a little bit like college,” he said Wednesday. “Not much has changed.”

Along with blind allegiance and unparalleled hatred, playing for Notre Dame brings an intense spotlight that comes with being the only school to have its own television contract. So when Quinn makes his second straight start in prime time Monday night in Buffalo, it will seem like old times.

“Having that experience and being able to play under that type of media focus, national focus, every game felt like a big game,” Quinn said of Notre Dame. “A Monday night game is no different, especially for us right now. Every game is a big game for us.”

While the bright lights don’t faze Quinn, starting after 24 games on the sideline was a momentous occasion in his life. So the same guy who admitted being overhyped for his preseason start in Detroit turned to a higher power for help.

“I’m a big guy in my faith,” he said. “I prayed about it constantly through the beginning of the game, throughout the game, for God to help me stay calm and be confident in my God-given abilities.

“Being able to feel comfortable and confident in there is a big key.”

The switch from Derek Anderson to Quinn wasn’t made to appease restless television executives, but it had that effect. At 3-6, the Browns are no longer a team worthy of prime time and a national audience. Quinn gives the networks something to promote and the country a reason to watch.

“It seems like he’s been there before,” receiver Donte Stallworth said. “He’s very confident in his ability, so that always helps.”

Quinn came to the Browns with a reputation for being smart and has done his best to cultivate it. He bristled this week when it was suggested he might not know the entire playbook and said only one thing surprised him about his first start.

“The fact that we lost,” he said. “I was pretty surprised by the outcome.”

Buffalo’s Trent Edwards, Miami’s John Beck, Kansas City’s Tyler Thigpen and Baltimore’s Troy Smith made starts well before Quinn, despite entering the league in the same draft with far less fanfare. When Quinn finally got his chance, he was ready for the speed of the game and to face an NFL defense.

“It wasn’t even an adjustment. It was as if I’d been doing it all along,” he said. “That was one of the nice things about it. Having that year and a half under my belt, I was able to get right in there and play.”

He also took comfort in the performance of rookies Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco this year.

“It allowed me to have confidence in my ability to come right in and play and play well and be whatever this team needs me to be,” he said.

Quinn went 23-for-35 (65.7 percent) for 239 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, no sacks and a 104.3 rating in the 34-30 loss to Denver.

“I thought Brady had a terrific first game,” Bills coach Dick Jauron said. “I thought he was accurate with his throws, he looked like he directed their offense without any problems and he did not look like he got rattled.”

But Quinn wasn’t satisfied and continues to blame himself for not leading a winning touchdown drive in the last two minutes. His final fourth-down pass was dropped by Kellen Winslow Jr.

“All the good quarterbacks, at the end of the game when they’ve got the ball in their hands, if they can drive the ball down and score, that makes them great,” coach Romeo Crennel said. “And he understands that. That’s why he said what he said.”

Petrak may be reached at spetrak@chroniclet.com or 440-329-7136.