Matt Cassel is doing what nobody expected him to do
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| Matt Cassel high fives Kevin Faulk, via Boston.com |
Matt Cassel has had a good, solid career as an NFL quarterback. He wasn't expected to be any more than a back up to Tom Brady, but when Brady went down with a knee injury, Matt Cassel stepped up and played great. He led the Patriots to an 11-5 record, but somehow that record wasn't good enough to make the playoffs. Any other year, it probably would have been.
Matt Cassel's success landed him in Kansas City in 2009, who was in need of a starting quarterback at the time. Cassel wasn't terrible, but he wasn't great. He was a capable starter, but replaceable, which is what happened when the Chiefs brought in Alex Smith from San Francisco in 2013.
Cassel landed with the Minnesota Vikings, and after using different starters all last season, Cassel was ultimately the smartest choice to start at QB. Not bad, not great...just a solid, capable starter. He has solidified himself as the starter this year, even with first-round pick Teddy Bridgewater nipping at his heels.
If it weren't for a Brady injury, we might still see Cassel as the back up here in New England, but he could have been traded as well, who knows. His best season came the year he stepped in for Brady in 2008. Could his success have been a product of the organization and coaching staff he was under? You could absolutely make that argument, but you could also make it for Brady.
Cassel has played well enough to remain in the NFL as a starter, and not many quarterbacks can say that. Matt Leinart, the man Cassel played behind who was thought to be a great quarterback in the NFL, has been out of the league for quite a while now.
Matt Cassel certainly owes some of his success to his time in New England. I like him. He played incredible for us, and in a way I'm glad Brady went down so that he got that opportunity (as a Patriots fan I'm devastated that we missed out on a year of Brady to Moss).
Prior to then, he hadn't started a game since high school. I mentioned earlier in the article that not many quarterbacks can say they have remained in the league as a starter. How many quarterbacks who never started a single game in college can say they are an established starter in the NFL? Probably none. Matt Cassel had a lot of luck on his side, which got him his opportunity, but he still had to maintain himself and play well enough to stay in the league, and play well enough he has.
He is absolutely doing the unexpected.
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