Cassel traded to Chiefs - mixed emotions...

The Pats seem preety confident Brady is coming back and will be his old self. Nothing wrong with his arm, true, and good doctorin' should get his knee back to "100%", but I don't think he'll ever be the same. The psychological part of this injury is a real x factor, and I personally don't think he'll ever be the QB he was before the injury. I think his poise in the pocket will diminish, and he'll go from "football God" to "used to be a great player before that injury".

Anyways, Cassel was our best shot at another Super Bowl next year, and he's off to KC. Can't ride the pine after a season like that, and Brady's not going to be made to compete to get his job back. Obviously, Belichick knows more about running a football team than I do, but I still marvel at this. Brady should have come back and earned his way back to the starting QB job - that's just how the game is played. Anyone remember how he got his start?

Anyone here from NE or KC care to comment? Or any general fans that have an opinion?

I'm not the least surprise that Cassel was essentially sent packing. The Pats were never his team. He was always just keeping the spot warm for Tom Brady's magnificent (dare I say Messianic?) return. "How the game is played" doesn't apply to Tom Brady. Quite frankly, I think the NE fans and everybody in the NFL would have nothing but criticism and anger if Cassel was allowed to compete for the job. "What the fuck is Belichick doing?" They would all opine. "Don't they know that you can't have somebody like Tom Brady worrying about his job? He needs to jump back into the game, feet first!"

Having said all that, fuck I wish Cassel wasn't going to the Chiefs. A decent QB, a coach who doesn't have his head wedged up his ass, and a bit of life on defense, and they could have a serious team again. The Chiefs, as much as it pains me to say it, are not the Raiders. Once the Raiders began their death spiral after the SB loss, I knew it would take at least a serious miracle to save them (I'm talking a real, Biblical miracle. Water into wine stuff). But the Chiefs? They're always on the cusp of being a decent to good team. Herm Edwards was the worst thing that ever happened to them.

I really don't get dealing Cassel and the other guy (can't remember his name) for only a 2nd round pick. Cassel is a starting QB, and I think the defensive guy is either a potential starter or expected to get plenty of playing time. Sounds like a sweetheart deal for KC.

Also gotta wonder what they're smoking in Denver. They had a good QB with Cutler, now they've pissed him off by trying to get Cassel, and are apparently still looking to deal Cutler somewhere.

The coaching staff at Denver claims that various teams approached them with a deal that would involve Cutler, but they never seriously considered the offers. I don't know what's going on over there, but I hope I don't wake up one morning to discover that Cutler is playing for Detroit or Tampa or something. I want to give McDaniels a chance, but not if he completely fucks over the team.

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Originally posted by Oakminster

I really don't get dealing Cassel and the other guy (can't remember his name) for only a 2nd round pick. Cassel is a starting QB, and I think the defensive guy is either a potential starter or expected to get plenty of playing time. Sounds like a sweetheart deal for KC.....

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The other guy is Mike Vrabel, a fan (and Belichick) favorite. A smart, versatile player and lockeroom leader who as a 34 year old linebacker when the season starts is probably going to be a good solid player but is most likely on the downslope of his career. He should provide a nice veteran prescence for a young KC team.

One KC columnist suggested Vrabel might be seen as a management mole in the KC lockeroom, given the fact he is coming from the same organization as Pioli.

The consensus here in New England seems to be that KC probably did get the better end of the deal, the market for Cassel just wasn't as great as many had hoped. The concern seems to be that he had a good year throwing to great receivers behind a veteran offensive line and he may not be able to replicate that success somewhere else.

I'm really sorry to see Vrabel go but realistically the Pats needed to get younger at linebacker. At some point Tedy Bruschi will be gone too.

I think Belicheck would really need to screw up badly for a couple years in a row before I would start doubting his motives. If he dealt Cassell and Vrable to KC for only a 2nd round pick than I gots to think his reasoning is far beyond my comprehension of how to run a football team. So, until he starts calling punt plays on every 1st down and/or starts dressing like batman on the sideline each week, I'm not going to doubt his decisions.

However, I too, am a bit worried about Brady. Not because of his injury but more for all the distractions going on in his personal life. I dont believe he attended any games last year and havent really seen him associated with anything football related since he went down. On that same note, you cant open a freakin' boston newspaper without the gossip hens cacklin' about Gi.. and Bridget..and Jack... and anything else they can print about Tom's life just because they lack one themselves. If I were Tom I'd be apt to give it all up for the sake of some peace and privacy.

I hope we only start hearing about how well his rehab is going and how excited he is to start minicamp and other football related topics. That would help reassure me that he is the same Tom Brady he's always been.

Finally, I would like to wish Matt and Mike the very best in KC and thank them for some exciting ball games we've enjoyed here in NE.