It’s the question every Patriots fan is asking right now. Walk into a bar, start talking about the Patriots, and the discussion will inevitably turn to this.
What are the Patriots going to do with Matt Cassel after this season?
When this season ends, Cassel will become an unrestricted free agent. Three months ago, nobody in New England cared. Two months ago, everyone in New England wanted Matt Cassel cut. A month ago, everyone wanted Matt Cassel benched.
Today, everyone in New England is worried that our suddenly desirable former backup quarterback is going to leave without the Patriots getting anything in return.
Only one thing is certain: Matt Cassel will not be a New England Patriot next season. He may be a Viking, he may be a Buccaneer, or he may be a Lion (or some other quarterback-needy team), but he will not be a Patriot.
Cassel has been paying his dues since the day he graduated high school. He backed up Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, and Tom Brady. He hadn’t started a game, or even seen significant playing time, until week two of this season.
Since then, he’s morphed into a quality, dare I say above-average NFL starting quarterback.
Today, he’s far better than both guys who’s clipboards he carried in college. He’s no Tom Brady, but he’s closer to Tom Brady than he is Matt Leinart. More proof (as if Patriot fans needed any) that Pete Carroll doesn’t know what the heck he’s doing.
Two weeks ago, he leaped from “nice story” to “potential franchise quarterback” with his all-world performance against the Jets. He had one of those games. The type of games you dream about as a kid. The only thing missing from his performance against the Jets was a happy ending, but that was hardly his fault.
Then he was even better against the Dolphins.
Matt Cassel has come out of last two games smelling like roses. Green-colored roses. With dead Presidents’ faces on them.
So the Patriots have two options:
1) Let Matt Cassel go
He took over a team that was destined for a high draft pick and turned them into a contender. He didn’t fill Brady’s shoes, but he proved his own were pretty big as well. He earned a starting job somewhere, and the Patriots could let him go with no hard feelings.
After all, the Patriots drafted his replacement already. They knew he was likely gone after this season.
I can’t imagine the Patriots allowing this to happen, but it certainly is an option.
2) Franchise Cassel, then trade him
Any talk of franchising Matt Cassel was laughable just three weeks ago. Now, not only isn’t it laughable, but it seems likely.
The Patriots will be about $20 million under the cap this offseason. The franchise number for a quarterback will be about $11 million. The Patriots could easily franchise Cassel, then trade him before the draft.
I don’t expect anyone to give up two first-round picks, but if he keeps playing like he did against the Jets there’s no reason you can’t get one. Or at least a second-round pick.
The Patriots have holes on the defensive side of the ball. They need help in the secondary, and Jerod Mayo aside, their linebackers are getting old. The Patriots could use the pick(s) they get from a Matt Cassel trade to help replenish their defense.
If this season taught us anything, it’s that Tom Brady won’t be around forever. Let’s say he bounces back and is 100 percent next season. How much longer will Tom Brady be Tom Brady?
Three years? Five years?
Are we going to saddle the greatest quarterback of our generation with an old and slow defense? Brady should have five Super Bowl rings right now. His defense has let him down two years in a row. They fell apart against the Colts, and failed in the final seconds against the Giants.
Matt Cassel is the best thing that could have happened to the New England Patriots. Not because of what he brought to the table this season, but because of what he can bring them next season.
The Patriots must franchise their former backup quarterback this offseason. Matt Cassel has waited eight years to be someone’s starting quarterback. He can wait a few more months while the Patriots work out a trade with his next team.
This article was originally published at the New England Patriots Examiner. If you liked this, please check them out.
Sean Crowe covers the New England Patriots for Examiner.com and writes a bi-weekly column for Sports-Central.org.
He is a Senior Writer and an NFL Community Leader at Bleacher Report. You can email him at scrowe@gmail.com. His archive can be found here.
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about 1 month ago
Good article Sean. I, myself, am just not going to think about or worry about this until the end of the season. I hope it's not a distraction to the team hearing all the speculation about Cassel's future. I just want to get to the playoffs and hope for a great run!
from about 1 month ago
Thanks. I'm in the same boat you are. But it's amazing considering where we were a few months ago that "franchising Matt Cassel" is a legit discussion.
about 1 month ago
nice article. I dont see the Patriots franchising Cassel. also, im not 100% sure but i believe there is an NFL rule on franchising just totrade a player, i know what your thinking '' it happen in minnesota it did but unless they (the patriots) can prove that Brady isnt going to be healthy, my belief is the patriots will just let him go
from about 1 month ago
The Patriots won't know about Brady until June or July. So they can easily franchise Cassel and say "We need him in case Brady isn't ready" then trade him after he refuses to sign the one year tender...
about 1 month ago
If Favre retires before free agency starts there's no way in hell Cassel isn't franchised. Shortly after he'll be traded to the team with the best offer.
Keep in mind they have a kid named Kevin O'Connell who they really liked out of SD State I believe, and he was supposed to be the next Brady backup.
They'll be thrilled if they get a 2nd rounder for Matt IMO.
from about 1 month ago
Right. There's no way they can let Cassel sign in New York or Miami. They have to franchise him so they can make sure he doesn't end up on a team they play twice every season...
about 1 month ago
Fantastic article. I especially like that you called out New England's ever-changing opinion of Matt Cassel. It's true, no one knew who Matt Cassel was. Many people thought of him as a waterboy, not surprising after he has spent his NFL career on 2nd string. But now, people are starting to see Matt Cassel for who he is. A more-than-decent quarterback who is dangerous in both the passing game and the rushing game. If Matt Cassel doesn't have a pass play 30 yards downfield, look for him to make up for 15-20 of them in a QB Run. He's much more dangerous than anyone gives him credit for, and with Tom Brady injured, people are finally able to see that. Look for Matt Cassel to be someone's starting Quarterback next season.
from about 1 month ago
I have followed Matt Cassel's career since he was drafted and I've seen him play in a back-up role several times, and seen him play in pre-season every year. But I will admit, I was not a believer in Cassel. He had a terrible pre-season, at least to my eyes. And I think few people realize he almost lost his job to Matt Guetirez(sp?), who the Pats re-signed to the practice squad as the 3rd string emergency QB. It's a testament to Cassel and the coaching staff that he has improved so greatly over the course of this year.
But I was not one of those who thought the Pats would have a losing record and have no chance to make the playoffs with Cassel at QB. (Okay, okay I admit I thought we should have signed a veteran QB -- BEFORE BRADY GOT HURT, AND AFTER. Fellow Pats fans don't stone me). With that aside, even with Cassel I was thinking 10-6, 9-7, make the playoffs.
Cassel frankly was pretty bad at the start of the season. He held the ball too long, made bad decisions with the ball, took sacks he shouldn't have taken, and missed open recievers.
Now let's not get too giddy about Cassel. He has a great arm but he still isn't throwing the deep ball well, last week excepted. He still struggles in the red zone, last week excepted. In fact, against the Jets in the first half he frankly was not very good at all. He was inaccurate on a lot of his throws and threw a terrible pass to Randy Moss in the end zone that Moss had no chance to catch. So he still has some improving to do, espeically in the red zone where coverage is tighter. But damn if he hasn't come along into a solid starting QB and if he continues to improve with experience he should be a solid starter for any team that has a half way decent offensive line.
And I will even add, the 400 game against the Jets that everyone praises him for, and I praise him too, masks his poor first half. But the second half of the Jets game and the entire Miami game he played at an extremely high level. We would have beaten the Jets if it hadn't been for three key miscues in the third quarter that prevented us from scoring. And many of the mistakes I fault him for above, he actually corrected in the Miami game. The Miami game was his best game this year.
If he leaves after this year I hope he doesn't go to the Lions because right now that could be a graveyard for his career. If he goes to the Jets or Dolphins I hope he fails badly, sorry. If he plays anywhere else I'll root for him!!! In a perfect world Brady comes back healthy and Cassel holds a clipboard so we'll have the best back-up in the league. In reality, who knows what will happen.
But this is still the 2008 season. I just can't worry about 2009 right now. And neither can Matt Cassel.
from about 1 month ago
My own opinion as well. I wrote an article titled "It's time for the Patriots to end the Matt Cassel experiment" after the San Diego game.
I was DEAD wrong. Glad to be wrong though...
about 1 month ago
Let me add two more comments here, Sean. First, I think the offense line let us down more than our defense against the Giants. The offensive line was damn awful in the Super Bowl. Our defense played about as well as I expected they could play. Let's face it, they weren't that good last year. The great offense covered that up. It was the last drive they failed us on. It was as if the defense thought the game was over when we scored and got ahead and had a huge let down. It frankly took a miracle drive to beat us in that Super Bowl, and I will be sick about that loss for the rest of my life. That game made me feel worse than the trouncing we took in Super Bowl XX.
I will also add, Randy Moss has been great this year. He has not sulked and whined in the media like terrible T.O. He gets double and sometimes triple covered (as does TO) every single game. Instead of tanking on us, he has played solid ball. My wife kept saying in the Jets game that Moss looked "indifferent." I told her he always looks that way. He wasn't "indifferent" when he caught that tying TD pass at the end of the game!!
Okay, I'm done, promise...
from about 1 month ago
I agree on Randy Moss. 100%. He's been fantastic.
As for the Super Bowl, I think the offensive line was bad, but when we needed them to put together a drive, the offense came through. The defense folded.
The defense last year wasn't bad, it just lacked play-makers. They needed a Ty Law to step up and make a play....instead they had a secondary that dropped two interceptions.
about 1 month ago
Sean, Great article.
As a Pats fan, I want to get something for him. Yet. something tells me management won't pay him double digit millions to back up Brady when he comes back next season. If the Patriots tag Cassel, he'll make more next year than Tom Brady and that 11 million will eat half of their cap room. We've seen them get rid of players we wanted for a while now.
Your right, they could tag him and trade him, but an unknown would be if a team is willing to pay someone who's only proved it for one season 11 million dollars. As far as I know, even if that teams signs him to a contract, he's still entitled to that 11 million for next season. I don't think any team would have jumped to pay Derek Anderson 11 million after his one good year last season and that's essentialy the same boat Cassel finds himself in.
Like I say though,Good article. Cassel's future is sure to be a point of debate for the next few months.
from about 1 month ago
Someone will pay draft picks for him. Especially if they make the playoffs. But more than what the Patriots get, they need to make sure he ends up on a team they have to play twice a year...and two of those teams could be looking for quarterbacks next season...
about 1 month ago
I don't think you're allowed to trade franchised players. It's a pretty recent rule.
And I don't think Cassel will be franchised unless he keeps racking up the 400 yard games. Franchising him would leave $9 to spend. And they'd still have holes in the secondary, at running back, and the right side of the O-line.
I honestly think he's a product of the system. He has a really slow release and takes a long time to make decisions. If he didn't have Light, Mankins, and Koppen blocking, I think he'd be a below average QB for the most part. But since he's doing well now, I'll just enjoy it.
from about 1 month ago
You're not allowed to franchise them just to trade them. But you can franchise them, have them turn down the one year tender, then trade them.
about 1 month ago
Cassel is probably a system QB. But damn is he thriving in the system. If it aint broke, don't fix it.
Brady's health is in question next year. One could reason that trading Brady would have huge upside. Say they get maybe 2 or 3 first rounders. Bam, you've rebuilt a defense.
And Cassel can get it done with a top 5 defense, instead of a middle of the pack defense this year.
14/15 of superbowl winners in the last 15 years have had top 5 defenses. I seriously don't think Brady will make it to a superbowl with a bottom feeder defense.
So trade him for some high picks and a new defense. Cassel can lead them to the show.
from about 1 month ago
Remember though, those picks would be spread over a couple of years...so it's not like we'd have a top 5 defense tomorrow. I'd rather take my chances with Brady and a decent defense...
about 1 month ago
I agree, Tom Brady is a fantastic quarterback. Love him or hate him, he's in his own league right now. Trading Tom Brady would be Bill Billichek's worst career move. Matt Cassel is good, but not good enough to rely on for the year. Its true, the Patriots' defense is lacking, but trading away Tom Brady is completely idiotic and unheard of. Do not call Brady a liability, because he is more than reliable in the game. Give Tom Brady the ball, and 9 times out of 10, he'll get you a touchdown everytime. Brady wont be the same in 2009, not for the first few games at least. I recommend playing him in the preseason if possible to warm him up early. But expect a full return of the Touchdown-Record Holder.
from about 1 month ago
Amen.
from about 1 month ago
I hope you are right. But how any real football fan could hate Tom Brady is beyond me. Read Tedy Bruschi's book after his comeback from a stroke, or Charlie Weiss book after he took over for Notre Dame, and you'll see what kind of person Brady is. He's a good human being, even if his web site is atrocious...
about 1 month ago
Personally when the defense held the Giants to 17 points, I can't fault them for XLII.
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