Food for thought

by KingRichard on Sep 17, 2008 12:10 PM EDT Comment 26 comments

Little backstory:

I was reading some posts over at colts.com and something intriguing came up. Someone mentioned that if Cassel has a good year for the Patriots, winning at least 10 games and not making many mistakes, that the Patriots would cut Brady.

Now I'm sure at first thought you are laughing out loud, and so was I. But if you really think about it for a minute, it's really not out of the realm of possiblity. Brady isn't going to be "Brady" next season. Look at what happened to McNabb. They guy is a haus, but it took him over a year just to get in the flow of things and become productive again. He looks like the McNabb of old at the moment. But do you think Belichick would be willing to keep Brady and pay him a ton of money all the while knowing it may be a while before Brady is up to snuff? The thing that also persuaded me to think that it's possible is some of the questionable moves Belichick has made in the past. Cutting Lawyer Milloy, letting Vinatieri walk, same with Asante Samuel.

Anyways, it's something to think about, and something that is worthy of discussion whether it's purely hypothetical or not.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors.

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Cutting Brady

I think that may IMO be in BB mind out of the question. You’re correct that Brady won’t be up to his norm self beginning of next season, and barring in further injury come playoff time next season I think everyone will see Brady close to his preinjury form.

Belichick has kept players on the team before that were injured for a extended about of time and it being Brady that is the one that is injured I believe BB thinks it’s better to keep him in the fold than have to play against him when he is fully recovered.

by Ufanforreal on Sep 17, 2008 12:39 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I could be wrong

But I think Brady is New England, not BB. I think Kraft the owner would have his own two cents with the decision and would want Brady to stay. This scenario is an intriguing story, but something that will just not happen. Cassel would have to win the Super Bowl (like Brady) for something like this to be thought about, not just 10 wins and making the playoffs.

by ColtsFanNChiTown on Sep 17, 2008 12:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

ChiTown

The Patriots do manage their personnel so as to get the most bang for the buck but, there’s no way they part with a talent like Brady… hell, the guy’s taken that team to four Super Bowls !!!

If Cassell (by some miracle) does lead N.E. to the Super Bowl then we’ve all got real problems. Should Cassel do well this season (ten wins), I wonder if the Pats will trade him to an outfit desperate for a decent QB ?

by nothingbettertodo on Sep 17, 2008 5:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dumb Move

That would be the dumbest move ever. I don’t think the Patriots are really that stupid, but I would like to see him in Blue if that happened. He’s better than a backup, but at least he wouldn’t be kicking our ass. LOL. If the Patriots cut him, can you imagine the rush of teams that would sign him.

by TouchdownMonkey on Sep 17, 2008 2:12 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

back-up

I would love to see the Patriot’s cut Brady and then it would be great if the Colts down the road picked him up as a back-up for Peyton.

by Ayrshire on Sep 17, 2008 3:32 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Re-back-up

That would be ironic but would never happen first off he would never agree to it and secondly a lot of teams would jump at the chance to have him as a starting QB.

And yes I knew you were joking, at least I think you were lol.

by Ufanforreal on Sep 17, 2008 3:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

yes

yes, you’re right, I was joking….kind of a jab at the patty trolls.

by Ayrshire on Sep 17, 2008 4:00 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

not so far fetched

Actually I have had the same thought. Let’s think here.. .how did Brady get the starter’s job? Bledsoe.. who was still a very good QB goes down and his (Much cheaper) backup comes in a does a decent job… Sound familiar? I wouldn’t be that surprised to see them part ways with Brady especially if the injury is lingering.. Those injured starters that the pats gave time too… Mostly on DEFENSE… The patriots strength for years has been on that side of the ball and with the complex stuff they do, you need the experience.

Before last year pats offense was good but not stellar… If Cassel can perform at that level, Brady’s job may well be at least open to the competition.

An expert is someone who knows more and more about less and less until they know everything about nothing...

by bluegirl on Sep 17, 2008 6:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Bledsoe did not have three notches on his gun.

The road to success is always under construction.

by standingpat on Sep 19, 2008 7:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sorry but

that first thought of laughter, thats not going to change. Brady is still Brady and if ever, BB thought it once to start Cassel over him, ill say he has lost it..

Cassel will play the same game plan he did during the Jets game. Run the pall and throw short slants and Screens. Cassel aint no Brady

by metal_militia on Sep 17, 2008 6:51 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Pretty far-fetched

By which I mean, “would never happen in a million years.”

Yes, it’s true that QBs don’t win championships all by themselves. If that were the case, Peyton would have more than one, and Marino would have several. But that does not mean that QBs are interchangeable, even in the Patriots system. It may take Brady half a season or more of playing to get back to form (as it did with McNabb), but when he gets back, he’s still the 2nd best QB in football. With an iffy running game and an aging defense, Brady gives the Pats their best chance to win by far. Belichick may have a huge ego, but he’s not a complete idiot.

And can you imagine the PR hit the franchise would take for letting go of a healthy, in-his-prime, future hall of Fame QB? They would have to spend the next 5 years trying to make it up to the fan base.

Personally, I’d love to see it happen. But I have a better chance of being elected President this year. (Seriously, write in ctnyc on your ballots! I promise to eliminate taxes for all Colts fans….)

by ctnyc on Sep 17, 2008 11:54 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Never happen...

as Terry points out ~~- if Peyton blows his knee out, does Polian and co. dump him , highly doubt it -~~-

This statement cracked me up “an aging defense” — do you even know who is on their defense ..
Hmmmmm, their front three (Seymour, Wilfork, and Warren) - some say one of the best front three in football —are all under 30, Adalius Thomas is 31, two rookies LBs , Mayo (who’s turning out to be a stud) and Crable ( who rotates with Thomas), then you have Ellis Hobbs (25), James Sanders(25) , Brandon Merriweather(24) in the backfield. Yeah we have Bruschi, Vrabel, and Harrison on our roster too, but the majority of the starters are young players…..looking at it from your perspective, every team has an aging defense— in that they get older every year…..

by OneMore on Sep 18, 2008 12:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

guess i can't use dashes in a post

as Terry points out , if Peyton blows his knee out, does Polian and co. dump him , highly doubt it .

This statement cracked me up "an aging defense", do you even know who is on their defense ..
Hmmmmm, their front three (Seymour, Wilfork, and Warren) ,some say one of the best front three in football,are all under 30, Adalius Thomas is 31, two rookies LBs , Mayo (who’s turning out to be a stud) and Crable ( who rotates with Thomas), then you have Ellis Hobbs (25), James Sanders(25) , Brandon Merriweather(24) in the backfield. Yeah we have Bruschi, Vrabel, and Harrison on our roster too, but the majority of the starters are young players…..looking at it from your perspective, every team has an aging defense,in that they get older every year…..

by OneMore on Sep 18, 2008 12:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Perspective

I guess I am thinking of the Pats’ defense in comparison to the Colts’ defense, which has so many good young players. It’s not really fair to the Pats. As I calculate it, the avergage age of the Pats’ D is 28.09. That’s certainly not ancient (although more than a third of their starters are over 30), but it is more than two full years older than the Colts’ (25.81 — with one starter exactly 30 and nobody over 30). I have no idea what the league average is.

My guess is that within a couple of years (which is the timeframe we’re talking about in terms of Brady being hampered) the Pats will be looking to replace several major components of their D. I’m betting that when this happens they would want to have Brady under center, as he would be best suited to offset some of the inevitable obstacles of the transition.

That’s the diplomatic answer.

by ctnyc on Sep 18, 2008 1:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

would the Colts cut Manning if he blew out his knee

and Sorgi played well in his absense? Of course not, thats just ridiculous and idiotic.

In Romo we Trust

by Terry on Sep 18, 2008 9:31 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I will say one thing ...

Kudos to Cassel for his perseverance … hasn’t started a game since high school and then has the shitty luck to be stuck behind Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart in college, but he knew he had the good and he stuck with it … hope he does well and lands a nice contract somewhere next year

"Ryno for President 08"

by ClarkFan44 on Sep 18, 2008 2:03 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

sorry - knew he had the "goods"

"Ryno for President 08"

by ClarkFan44 on Sep 18, 2008 2:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Interesting scenario

I think Brady’s the franchise QB and will be for a very long time. I’m probably jinxing myself and will regret saying this, but I just don’t see him in another uniform…ever. That being said, here’s a few data points: 1) Cassel’s contract is up at the end of the 2008 season, 2) Timing wise Brady’s injury puts him back on the field mid-April 2009 assuming a best case scenario (4 weeks for MCL, 6 months for ACL). Worst case he’s back end of July 2009 (6 weeks for MCL, 9 months for ACL).

I think everyone is correct in assuming he won’t be back to his normal Brady-ness, so I can see 1 of 2 things happening (assuming Cassel does well this year): 1) Cassel is either given a wad of money or franchised to continue to run the show in 2009 until Brady is ready or alternate with Brady 2) Cassel’s contract is up and he signs with another team in need of a starter.

The circumstances between Brady taking over for Bledsoe and the proposed Cassel taking over for Brady are vastly different, in my mind. Bledsoe had just come off of a 5-11 2000 regular season. I don’t want to diss the guy, but he never quite cracked that top 5 QB group like Brady has.

Good post, KR.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Sep 18, 2008 3:11 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Franchise Cassel?

Surely there’s no way they’d want to give him that kind of money?

by ctnyc on Sep 18, 2008 6:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I hear ya

If Brady’s not ready, I’m not sure what other options they’d have. Gutierrez was brought back to the practice squad and O’Connell (draftee) is pretty green. Maybe if O’Connell was ready they could make him #1 backup.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Sep 19, 2008 7:53 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

stupidity of management

Never underestimate the stupidity of management of ANY team… Who would think a team would fire their coach after going 14-2?

Why would you not resign Drew Brees?

What team would let Joe Montana go?

Who would let Ashante Samuel go when he is one of the best corners in football.

I think the point to be made here is how much is the system (and a very good offensive line) and how much the QB…

No maybe the situations aren’t quite comparable but Bledsoe did get the patriots to the superbowl and he still had some good seasons and posted good numbers with the bills (despite a horrid offensive line) after he left NE.

Belicheat strikes me as a control freak, and that might be the deciding factor is pushing a popular QB out the door if there is an adequate successor available.

An expert is someone who knows more and more about less and less until they know everything about nothing...

by bluegirl on Sep 19, 2008 12:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Agree to disagree

Anything can happen, but I can’t see Brady being pushed out. I could see them pulling in a replacement, either from without or within, but not totally replaced. Aside from the on-the-field success, I just think he’s THAT important to the franchise.

Asante was franchised in 2007 and was getting expensive. NE needed to fix a whole lot of other things with that money (linebackers, for instance), so sending him to a team that was willing to pickup an expensive corner was, in my mind, the right choice.

Blogger at SBNation's New England Patriots blog, Pats Pulpit

by MaPatsFan on Sep 19, 2008 1:12 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think you're right.

No way they let Brady go. And Samuel was the right decision.

by coltsfanawalt on Sep 19, 2008 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Everybody blamed the O line...

When Bledsoe was the QB, but when Brady took over they looked like all pro’s. Bledsoe already peaked well before he went down and was never a “smart” QB.

The road to success is always under construction.

by standingpat on Sep 19, 2008 7:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs