Bledsoe or Cassel

[Deus Irae]

This is tough. Bledsoe wins hands down in terms of looking only at production, pedigree and experience. In terms of arm strength, they might actually be even - Cassel has a cannon, his two brothers are pro MLB players. In terms of vision and not making mistakes, Cassel might be better than 2000 Bledsoe. In terms of mobility, Cassel may be even or even better. Cassel also seems to play more in the system since he came from humble origins and is less likely to do his own thing compared to 2000 Bledsoe.

Cassel's arm strength is even with Bledoe's and Cassel has a cannon?

Wait a second, Cassel MAY be more mobile than Bledsoe? Did you ever actually watch Bledsoe play? Are you drunk right now?

I totally agree with the rest of your post, but I almost spit my drink on my keyboard when I read that

Given that you stated that you're in agreement with Maverick about Cassel's arm strength in comparison to Bledsoe, you might want to retract your "Are you drunk...?" question.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Cassel's arm strength is even with Bledoe's and Cassel has a cannon?



Given that you stated that you're in agreement with Maverick about Cassel's arm strength in comparison to Bledsoe, you might want to retract your "Are you drunk...?" question.

A few posts ago I said "Cassel may not have Bledsoe's arm, but he is more mobile and takes better care of the ball. I'll take Cassel over Bledsoe, in today's NFL, any day of the week. The game has changed a lot since 1996." Glossed over it this time around.

 

[TheGodInAGreyHoodie]

A few posts ago I said "Cassel may not have Bledsoe's arm, but he is more mobile and takes better care of the ball. I'll take Cassel over Bledsoe, in today's NFL, any day of the week. The game has changed a lot since 1996." Glossed over it this time around.

Hmmm....granted he never caught any of Bledsoe passes but Wes Welker might disagree with you about whether Cassel has a cannon for an arm.

In fact the only critisism I heard all year about Cassel from any NEP player was from WW complaining that Matt threw the ball TOO HARD.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Hmmm....granted he never caught any of Bledsoe passes but Wes Welker might disagree with you about whether Cassel has a cannon for an arm.

In fact the only critisism I heard all year about Cassel from any NEP player was from WW complaining that Matt threw the ball TOO HARD.

Hahaha, I don't think he had a weak arm by a long shot, but Bledsoe's was absolutely ridiculous. Probably one of the strongest-armed QBs ever.

 

[Deus Irae]

A few posts ago I said "Cassel may not have Bledsoe's arm, but he is more mobile and takes better care of the ball. I'll take Cassel over Bledsoe, in today's NFL, any day of the week. The game has changed a lot since 1996." Glossed over it this time around.

That's fine, although I disagree with you. My post there was just about the context of the "drunk" with your "totally agree with the rest of your post". It's like misspelling words or butchering sentences in a post where you call someone else an idiot.

 

[Dirk3601215]

cassel had a weak arm and all he could do was dump the ball off and make an occasioanl 30 yd throw every once in a while. Friggin shaun hill has a stronger arm than that overrated, douche bag, bum cassell did.

 

[JoeSixPat]

This is a good silly thread - especially with everyone debating this non-issue so seriously - but I'll play!

To me its a slam dunk. Bledsoe had one moment doing what backup QBs do - Cassel had 16 games doing what backup QBs do.

But Bledsoe's one moment gave the Patriots a win at a critical time in their playoff run for their first Championship. Ultimately THAT'S what you pay your backup to do.

That puts him in a different realm than Cassel. He gets the dubious nod from me.

 

[tanked_as_usual]

bledsoe threw for 4300 yards and 24 TDs for the bills the year after he left the pats........how much anyone wanna bet cassel don't even come close?

 

[mgteich]

Are you serious? Cassel is a $14M a year QB stolen for the 34th pick in the draft. He was our Steve Young. Surely Cassel is headed to the pro-bowl this year. NOT!

bledsoe threw for 4300 yards and 24 TDs for the bills the year after he left the pats........how much anyone wanna bet cassel don't even come close?

 

[maverick4]

Cassel has a cannon for an arm. He was a pitcher in HS and in college for the Trojans, and his two brothers are pro MLB pitchers.

 

[upstater1]

Clearly we disagree on that.
I don't know where the supporting cast argument comes from.
Bledsoe had Troy Brown, the best comparison the Wes Welker that ever existed and Terry Glenn who was a clear #1 quality WR.
Why did Brady take the same team that Bledsoe was 5-13 with and go 11-3 all the way to a champinship if the supporting cast was bad?
Bledsoe had a supporting cast that went on to win 11 of 14 and a SB as soon as he was replaced. Cassell took a team that hadn't won a SB in 4 years to a 11-5 record.

Supporting cast arguments may work when its close, but 5-13 and 11-5 are not close.

2000 was BB's first year when he gutted the team and brought in some hold the fort guys who didn't see much time later on. He had the same kind of turnaround in Cleveland as well in his first two years. I'm not saying Bledsoe was better than Brady. Clearly, Brady was the better QB and had a lot to do with those 11 wins. But I don't think the difference was as dramatic as 5 wins versus 11.

 

[upstater1]

Regarding the supporting cast.

Cassel did have basically the same teammates that Brady took to the SB and lost the SB with. With that cast of characters Cassel won 11 games and was a 3rd tie breaker from winning the division.

But Bledsoe had the same teammates Brady took to the SB and won. With that cast of charcters Bledsoe won 5 games in 2000 coming in 5th in the divsion and lost the first two games in 2001.

Wasn't the same. If you look at the 2000 team and compare to 2001, there was a sea change in personnel. 30 of the 2000 players were gone. Heck, Anthony Pleasant wasn't even on the team yet in 2000. Belichick was sweeping out the old guys in 2000.

These were 2000 Patriots who weren't around a year later:

QB Michael Bishop
TE Eric Bjornson
WR Chris Calloway
FB Tony Carter
LB Antico Dalton
WR Shockmain Davis
DT Chad Eaton
TE Chris Eitzmann
G Derrick Fletcher
FB Chris Floyd
S Tony George
WR Terry Glenn
DT Reggie Grimes
RB Raymont Harris
G Sale Isaia
WR Curtis Jackson
DT Garrett Johnson
LB Olrick Johnson
LB Andy Katzenmoyer
T Adrian Klemm
T Max Lane
CB Antonio Langham
LB Marc Megna
FB Jeff Paulk
CB Kato Serwanga
RB Harold Shaw
WR Tony Simmons
CB Otis Smith
DE Greg Spires
DT Henry Thomas

 

[upstater1]

You're basing an entire decade on 2 throws? Well okay then, although neither of those throws were absolutely incredibly or anything (good throws, but not unbelievable) which is what it should take to put some guy over the top on an all-decade team based on those throws alone.

As for mentoring Brady, none of that would have mattered if he hadn't cleared the path for Brady to play by almost getting killed by Mo Lewis, so my original point stands. And for the second part, I'm not sure how that makes him a better player. I guess I don't hold willingness to sit on the bench without complaining because someone else on the team is better than you in quite the esteem that you do. I'm thankful to him for not raising a fuss, but once again, that's a pretty minor point in the grand scheme of things. It certainly doesn't outweigh Cassel's 2008 contributions.

Watch that 2001 AFCC again. The throw to Troy Brown on 3rd and long in the fourth quarter, when the Patriots desperately needed a reception, was an absolutely amazing throw.

 

[upstater1]

To be honest it's not as clear cut as you seem to suggest. It does, however, show us how strong the Pats have been in the decade with Brady as #1... we've never needed to rely on another except for this past season and the 2000 season (which, if I remember correctly, was not NE's finest).

Cassel's 08 season is better than Bledsoe's 00... and those are the only one's in which either was the main starter.

Yet... because of the 01 season's dependance on Bledsoe int he playoffs, I can understand people liking BLedsoe here. But I'll go with Cassel.

I just based it on who I'd rather have back there. Clearly, Cassel had the starts because Brady got hurt. So, in the end, I just base it on who I'd rather see play with the all-decade team, and ignore the stats. 2001 Bledsoe or 2008 Cassel. That's how I looked at it.

 

[Patjew]

Watch that 2001 AFCC again. The throw to Troy Brown on 3rd and long in the fourth quarter, when the Patriots desperately needed a reception, was an absolutely amazing throw.

No argument. But at the same time DB made some poor decisions that game and was rated poorly by the Pats coaching staff.

 

[Patjew]

Wasn't the same. If you look at the 2000 team and compare to 2001, there was a sea change in personnel. 30 of the 2000 players were gone. Heck, Anthony Pleasant wasn't even on the team yet in 2000. Belichick was sweeping out the old guys in 2000.

These were 2000 Patriots who weren't around a year later:

QB Michael Bishop
TE Eric Bjornson
WR Chris Calloway
FB Tony Carter
LB Antico Dalton
WR Shockmain Davis
DT Chad Eaton
TE Chris Eitzmann
G Derrick Fletcher
FB Chris Floyd
S Tony George
WR Terry Glenn
DT Reggie Grimes
RB Raymont Harris
G Sale Isaia
WR Curtis Jackson
DT Garrett Johnson
LB Olrick Johnson
LB Andy Katzenmoyer
T Adrian Klemm
T Max Lane
CB Antonio Langham
LB Marc Megna
FB Jeff Paulk
CB Kato Serwanga
RB Harold Shaw
WR Tony Simmons
CB Otis Smith
DE Greg Spires
DT Henry Thomas

Wow, that is some turnover!

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

I was a huge fan of Bledsoe's in the 90s and a defender of him on this board, but he was never suited for the Pats' offense under Weis and wouldn't have been suited for the McDaniels' offense either. It was painful to watch him throw bubble screens at Troy Brown's ankles. Bledsoe was never all that adept at reading defenses, quick passes, or the short passing game. That is why he struggled so much in 2000.

If the Pats ran another offense, maybe I would have chosen him over Cassel. But there was just a mismatch between what Belichick wanted to accomplish and Bledsoe's skill set. That is why I think if you are talking the Patriots' All 2000s team, it has to be Cassel. Bledsoe would be second after Brady if you had an all time team and Cassel wouldn't even be third.

I like this post. I too, have always been a fan of Bledsoe, and refrain from bashing him. He had many issues as a QB, but I prefer to be a fan, and not a hater. Bottom line, BB runs an offense that just would not have worked well with Drew. So based off the original question, i would go with Cassel.

As for the debate going back, and forth. I will say that i find it interesting that the obvious haters, always say Drew was an a** while on the sidelines. All that info comes from a book, written by a media member, and another book witten by an ex-coach. I thought it was always a good practice to have the facts, before judging someone. I seem to remember that All of us stopped listening to the media. They do, on occasion, blow things out of proportion. And before anyone says the books are based on facts, please show me the proof. Books are not always factual. Some authors spice things up once in awhile

Last request. Could we please stop making threads that have anything to do with Drew Bledsoe? Everytime his name is mentioned on this board, it turns into a love/hate fest. Lets try to be nice when speaking of him. This obviously does not apply to "molewisrocks" JK, MO

 

[Patjew]

I like this post. I too, have always been a fan of Bledsoe, and refrain from bashing him. He had many issues as a QB, but I prefer to be a fan, and not a hater. Bottom line, BB runs an offense that just would not have worked well with Drew. So based off the original question, i would go with Cassel.

As for the debate going back, and forth. I will say that i find it interesting that the obvious haters, always say Drew was an a** while on the sidelines. All that info comes from a book, written by a media member, and another book witten by an ex-coach. I thought it was always a good practice to have the facts, before judging someone. I seem to remember that All of us stopped listening to the media. They do, on occasion, blow things out of proportion. And before anyone says the books are based on facts, please show me the proof. Books are not always factual. Some authors spice things up once in awhile

Last request. Could we please stop making threads that have anything to do with Drew Bledsoe? Everytime his name is mentioned on this board, it turns into a love/hate fest. Lets try to be nice when speaking of him. This obviously does not apply to "molewisrocks" JK, MO

That is definitely true. Drew (who I liked, as well, but was also often frustrated by) illicits the most emotional responses for some reason.

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

Terry Glenn did play some games in 2001, he was suspended the first few games in 2001, then hurt his hammy , then played the last 3 games, then was not on the playoff roster..

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

Watch that 2001 AFCC again. The throw to Troy Brown on 3rd and long in the fourth quarter, when the Patriots desperately needed a reception, was an absolutely amazing throw.

And that throw to Joey porter , who almost caught it, is the main reason for the love hate relationship with Drew... He did throw a nice bomb to Patten , which would have broken the game wide open as well..