Matt Cassel plays like Drew Bledsoe

[maverick4]

Both have:
- Cannon arms and can really fire the ball accurately down the field if given time
- Horrible pocket presence
- Take tons of sacks
- Not exactly adept at hitting the 3rd or 4th option
- Fall apart if the O-line has problems
- QB ratings around high 70's

Cassel is better at quick outs and also completes more percentage of passes. But I will go out on a limb and say that Cassel is not worse than Drew Bledsoe was in early 2001 (his last year with the Pats).

 

[solesides]

I am having more fun watching this football game than I have had watching the Pats in a long time. A Hole needs to throw the ball though. This getting sacked play after play crap is ridiculous.

Tons of sacks is an understatement. Help the O line out a little bit, Cassel. Wins are nice, but seeing improvement from the QB would be a lot nicer

 

[shmessy]

Plus he tends to telegraph his throws. There's zero deception. We've been really spoiled by Brady. The D simply can't watch his eyes - - he's a magician.

 

[Phlash]

That's funny, I said the same thing to my dad tonight while watching the game. The thing is, a lot of it is playcalling. When he rolls out, he's fantastic. In the pocket, though, he seems to get eaten up. I think if they get him out in the flats more to throw, he'd do better.

 

[DarrylS]

He plays like Drew Bledsoe except he looks like he is standing in cement.. how much I miss Tom, we are all so spoiled.

 

[DisgruntledTunaFan]

You guys are up 20-0, so what's the fuss?

Look at my team(the Cowboys)-Romo's backup is a decent experienced vet, but somehow they found a way to get blown out by a really crappy Rams team. That team has no leadership and heart.

The Pats, OTOH, their leadership, heart and passion is quite obvious.

 

[Hok]

I hear he got sacked twice during halftime.

 

[ShrewBeer]

hell, brady would get sacked like crazy in this game too. the o line woke up and remembered how to run block, and forgot how to pass block. cassel still blows though.

 

[upstater1]

I don't think they are similar QBs. Bledsoe is much better and much more accurate throwing downfield. Cassel is much better at Bledsoe in the quick outs and short game.

Cassel is much more mobile. Bledsoe stood in a sack of cement.

That being said, Bledsoe had much better pocket presence, and though he held the ball too long and made some horrid decisions, he stood tall in the pocket, never turtled, and took hard hard hits as he was a gutsy QB that let go of the ball at the last second.

 

[TruthSeeker]

Matt Cassel will never be half the player Drew Bledsoe was - and Drew wasn't that great.

 

[VJCPatriot]

I hear he got sacked twice during halftime.

LOL. Good one.

 

[maverick4]

That's funny, I said the same thing to my dad tonight while watching the game. The thing is, a lot of it is playcalling. When he rolls out, he's fantastic. In the pocket, though, he seems to get eaten up. I think if they get him out in the flats more to throw, he'd do better.

Yeah a friend of mine texted mid-game after this thread and said the same thing with the Bledsoe comparison. If only Cassel could improve his presence in the pocket...

 

[jays52]

My dad and I said the same thing during our halftime phone call. It's not just the presence, he can't read. Cassel has zero ability to check through his progression. He telegraphs his throws, stares down his primary and if it's not there just folds. It was perfectly shown on the designed dump to faulk He missed several checkdowns, including a critical one to Watson on the PA waggle at 8. The more film teams get on him, the more he is going to have to improve his reads. It all comes from experience, so I'll hold off judgement on his congative abilities. I am doubtful about his intelligence though.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

What a pathetic thread. You people don't understand the progression every QB has to go through in order to make it in this league. Drew never progressed passed what he was in college - a tall guy with a big arm and a big ego. Matt's tall too, but that's where the similarity ends. He's always been capable of checking his ego at the door which is one of the key criteria for a BB team. He has a fine arm and can make all the throws. He's has a whole half dozen NFL speed games under his belt and he is progressing as quickly as his OL will allow. He doesn't make the same game killing mistakes over and over and over, so that's another difference. He's a tough kid and he takes his lumps without panicing or committing costly turnovers, and absent an all pro line that's the best you can expect - Drew was totally ineffective absent a top flight line and TE...and in Dallas even with them.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

My dad and I said the same thing during our halftime phone call. It's not just the presence, he can't read. Cassel has zero ability to check through his progression. He telegraphs his throws, stares down his primary and if it's not there just folds. It was perfectly shown on the designed dump to faulk He missed several checkdowns, including a critical one to Watson on the PA waggle at 8. The more film teams get on him, the more he is going to have to improve his reads. It all comes from experience, so I'll hold off judgement on his congative abilities. I am doubtful about his intelligence though.

I'm doubtful about yours.

 

[jays52]

I'm doubtful about yours.

Eloquent in it's brevity, care to elaborate?

 

[maverick4]

What a pathetic thread. You people don't understand the progression every QB has to go through in order to make it in this league. Drew never progressed passed what he was in college - a tall guy with a big arm and a big ego. Matt's tall too, but that's where the similarity ends. He's always been capable of checking his ego at the door which is one of the key criteria for a BB team. He has a fine arm and can make all the throws. He's has a whole half dozen NFL speed games under his belt and he is progressing as quickly as his OL will allow. He doesn't make the same game killing mistakes over and over and over, so that's another difference. He's a tough kid and he takes his lumps without panicing or committing costly turnovers, and absent an all pro line that's the best you can expect - Drew was totally ineffective absent a top flight line and TE...and in Dallas even with them.

You're making it sound like you think Cassel is already better than Bledsoe... ??

 

[Deus Irae]

This thread is an insult to both Quarterbacks. Bledsoe was far better than most of you give him credit for, and tonight Cassel was clearly feeling the pass rush better than he did in San Diego. The amount of football ignorance on display here has been staggering in recent weeks, and this thread fits right in with the worst of them.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

You're making it sound like you think Cassel is already better than Bledsoe... ??

For a Belichick team, he is.

 

[emoney_33]

Yeah a friend of mine texted mid-game after this thread and said the same thing with the Bledsoe comparison. If only Cassel could improve his presence in the pocket...

Who said he can't? You guys need more patience. We don't have the coach's film so we can't see what the field looks like on most plays but maybe he's being coached NOT to take risks (i.e. throwing into small windows) at this point in his career. The guy has NOT made hardly any mistakes so far and is playing pretty damn well for a guy who hasn't started since HS.

We shouldn't expect him to be a game changer yet, but he is being groomed and worked into being an advantage for the patriots in the playoffs. Let's hope he continues to improve (along with the OL and the rest of the team).