mayoclinic

TB is arguably the greatest of all time. Therefore, whoever comes after him will not likely be at the same level.

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"OVER Loading at ANY position can create a Fatal Advantage. THAT is what interests ME. Attacking With Concentrated Force. THAT is what WINS. In the words ~ more or less ~ of General Patton: 'I'm fighting a WAR, here. Let the B*****ES worry about their FLANKS.' " - Off the Grid

"The key to any successful organization is to anticipate things, not react to them." - Michael Lombardi

Jimke

You make good sense. Just sit back and enjoy watching Brady play
until his career with the Pats ends.

I am an old timer who goes back to the 1960 season. After watching
a lot of lousy teams, it is heaven to me to worry about whether we
will win another Superbowl. I used to be satisfied with a handful of wins.

patsfaninpa

I just wanted to win the division and beat Shula at least once. These are our golden years. As Pats fans that is. One of the top 2-3 coaches in league history. And, one of the top 2-3 qb's in league history.

patfanken

What happened to guys like Montana and Elway after 35 is really not relevant today, quite frankly. The game has changed. The protection provided both QBs and receivers will lengthen the effectiveness of QB's like Tom Brady. Especially Brady, His lack of "athletic ability" is actually an advantage. His needs only to continue within that 5 yd box of the "pocket". There should be no dramatic loss of arm strength either. Farve was still throwing bullets into his 40's. The only question of deterioration the Pats should be worried about is Brady's competitive desire. Because if IT is maintains its current high level, Brady could easily maintain a high level of play for another 5 years. Which would mean that his eventual replacement is still in HS.

In an ideal world, when Brady is ready to retire, the defense we are building will have matured into a dominant one, and the next Patriot QB will not have to be "Tom Brady" to succeed here.

Stilla

I would think we would want to carry 3 QBs prior to entering mallets final contract year, and continue holding 3 until TB retires. We acquire a third QB next season.

Ochmed Jones

If anything happens to Brady, we are faced with a difficult situation with Mallet starting and an X factor as the backup. During the season there just are not enough snaps in practice for the young guys.

Can Mallet duplicate a Cassel like 2008 season if Brady goes down?

patsfaninpa

I think if we got him a downfield threat he could. Cassel had Randy Moss. Not saying we need Larry Fitzgerald. But, if we him a deep threat. I think he has a fighting chance. Probably allows you to sign an impact defensive player too because of lower salary for a few years. I'm curious to see him play a regular season half or so. We win next three. Baltimore beats Denver but loses to Giants. We'd have the 2nd seed and a bye locked up headed into that last game against Miami. I think he'd struggle a little with our current offense and lack of experience.

Right now this offense is made to fit a veteran, high pct passer. A guy like Rich Gannon in his Oakland years would be very good in our offense.

patfanken

Cassell is interesting because of the success he had in 2008. Don't forget he had 2 CONSECUTIVE 400 yd passing games that year. IIRC that's something TB had never done to that point. Clearly Josh McDaniels got the most out of Matt Cassell. Certainly more than any of his other coaches. Lets assume that at some point the Pats trade Mallet in order to retrieve some of his draft value. Cassel would make a good back up because he's proven he can be productive in this offensive system, and would come at a lower price. THEN 3 or 4 years from now you draft the QB who will ultimately replace Brady, and maybe give him a year on the bench backing up Cassell for a year.

Cassell, I think would prove to be a far more effective QB here in Foxboro than he was in KC But lets be certain of one thing. Ryan Mallet, barring a Brady injury, is NEVER going to start a game for the NE Patriots.....at least under his rookie contract.

Avenger

Weiss certainly got at least a much out of Cassel as McDaniels

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mayoclinic

You raise an interesting scenario. KC will almost certainly part ways with Cassel after this season and he'll be a FA. He's due $7.5M in 2013, and there's no way they'll keep him. I can't see him getting a starting gig anywhere. Re-signing with the Pats to be re-united with BB and Josh McDaniels as Brady's backup might not be a bad move.

The question is, would Ryan Mallett have any trade value at this point in his career? Teams are desperate for QBs, and this draft class is terribly weak. Ryan Mallett has 2 years of seasoning under BB and TB. He's more likely to be ready to step in and start than most of the rookies in this draft - there aren't any Andrew Luck and RGIII talents out there.

It's pure speculation and a huge "if", but if someone wanted to make a decent offer for Mallett and Cassell were available in free agency, re-signing Cassell could make Mallett expendable for 2013. The Pats could then pick up someone like AJ McCarron in 2014.

What compensation they might get is another question (I wonder if they could do something with some mid round picks in 2013 and a conditional 2014 pick, depending on Mallett's performance). But I think that unless the Pats believe that Brady is done with the team after 2014, the odds are that they won't get anything for Mallett beyond a Brady insurance policy, anyway. And Cassell's already proven he can provide that.

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To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
"OVER Loading at ANY position can create a Fatal Advantage. THAT is what interests ME. Attacking With Concentrated Force. THAT is what WINS. In the words ~ more or less ~ of General Patton: 'I'm fighting a WAR, here. Let the B*****ES worry about their FLANKS.' " - Off the Grid

"The key to any successful organization is to anticipate things, not react to them." - Michael Lombardi