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Cassel vs. Brady

By: Jonathan Magnuson

Posted: 9/17/08

Matt Cassel is not the new Tom Brady. He is the updated version. Everyone is waiting for Matt Cassel to throw forty touchdowns in a year. They expect him to win every game like Tom Brady did last year.

This will most likely not happen right away. There are possibilities for a Super Bowl still. In Tom Brady's first game and a half in 2001 when he became the starter he completed only 18 passes in 33 attempts. His completion percentage was 52.25. He did not throw one touchdown nor did he throw an interception.

In fact his season was not as glamorous as people think they remember. In the 2001 season Tom Brady threw over 300 yards just once against a young inexperienced San Diego team. Tom also ended up throwing 12 interceptions in 14 games, four of which came against the Denver Broncos in Denver in week seven.

Cassel was nothing less than solid in his first game in which he started. He played against what some people may believe to be an overrated team, with a worn out quarterback who is passed his prime.

In Matt's first game and one half he had a 70.7 completion percentage. This is better than Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Donovan McNabb, Jay Cutler, Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Jake Delhomme and Kurt Warner. In actuality he is 5th in the entire league in this statistic.

Even when it came to the playoffs our beloved Tom Brady was still not as efficient as many think. In three games in which the Patriots scored a combined sixty points Tom Brady only threw one touchdown, with a completion percentage of 61.9.

Patriot fans must wait to see how Cassel handles himself throughout more than just the preseason. If the greatest coach in Patriot history has faith in Matt Cassel as he has shown by not pulling him, signing another quarterback or making a trade for one, shouldn't his fans?

In conclusion, Cassel is exactly what Tom Brady use to be, an un-known talent. He backed up two quarterbacks who in their college days were some of the best in Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart. Then when being drafted into the NFL he backed up the greatest quarterback to ever play, Tom Brady.


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