People thought about it before. Right now they aren't afraid to say it. With the next loss, it will be a demand.
Make a change quarterback. Cassel's not doing the job.
Yeah, Great idea. That will solve all problems. Now who do you put in?
I wonder how many people would pause before naming a replacement. Do they even know the names of the back-ups on the roster? How much patience would they have if the next guy in line didn't perform up to the lofty standards?
I'm not ready to take the chance of throwing away this season. The Patriots are 3-2 with eleven games to go. The schedule is one of the easiest remaining schedules in the league. Apparently people forgot that the season was going to be a lot tougher after the major injury in week one.
Oh, wait a minute. I get it. Keep changing quarterbacks until we find the next Tom Brady. Let's try out Matt Gutierrez and Kevin O'Connell to see if they have that special "it" that Brady has. We already know Cassel doesn't have "it." We'll keep on changing quarterbacks until we find the guy that can lead the team to another Super Bowl win like Brady did.
That must be how Pats fans are thinking and they are way off.
If they're looking for the next Brady, they don't have to bother. Tom Terrific is coming back to begin rehab on his knee this week. Maybe the team can petition the league to have a 12th man on the field with the offense to roll Brady around in a specially designed wheel chair. With Brady back under center, the team becomes the dominant squad of 2003 or 2004 instantly.
Patriot Nation needs smelling salts right now.
I'm willing to give the coaching staff the benefit of the doubt with their decision to keep Cassel as the starter. They've seen him a lot more of him than we have. Fans want O'Connell because he played decently against third and fourth string defenses in the preseason. Or they're calling for Gutierrez, the man who regressed from last year.
There's no denying that Cassel played poorly. There's at least three passes he wishes he had back, and probably more. As the quarterback he gets the lion's share of the blame. But people are ignoring the other problems that plagued the team on Sunday.
The offensive line allowed plenty of pressure throughout the game. The receivers dropped passes. And the defense was non-existent all night long. The expectations are for Cassel to manage the game, but he can't do that if the D isn't keeping the game close.
Did Cassel underthrow WR Randy Moss once and throw over the wrong shoulder another time? Yes. Did Cassel not see a wide open TE Ben Watson in the endzone? Absolutely. Well why isn't the offensive line being taken to task for being unable to push forward one measley yard on two plays or not giving Cassel time in the pocket to spot Watson?
Cassel would be the first to admit he needs to play better. But what are the expectations for a player with just four pro starts? Cassel threw a little more than 30 passes in college. He's practically starting from scratch. He's making progress, but not enough to satisfy the people who think Brady's story can be repeated by all reserve signal callers.
Well here's a reminder: Tom Brady is a once in a generation player. We are lucky to have him on our team. Until he returns to full health, Cassel is the starter until he gives the coaches undeniable reasons to warrant benching him. For a back-up thrust into his first starting role since high school, he's doing OK.
Bench Cassel. Yeah, well for who? People must think back-up QBs are a dime a dozen. If that's so, then the guy that replaces Cassel would be next to worthless.
