Matt Cassel Traded

Multiple sources are reporting that Matt Cassel has been traded to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Wow, it's been a busy couple of days for the Pats, and for teams now run by ex-Pats...

They traded both Mike Vrabel and Matt Cassel to the Chiefs, and released Jabar Gaffney and Lonie Paxton, who both signed with the Broncos.

On the plus side, they picked up running back Fred Taylor from the Jaguars, and tight end Chris Baker from the Jets.

While by themselves, these pickups don't seem like much (although I must admit, I've always been a Fred Taylor fan...), it would appear that Bill has a plan here. My guess is that he's clearing cap room for a bigger acquisition (Julius Peppers maybe?), and helping out his prodigies get their new houses in order.

It will be fun to watch and see just how large of an iceberg is about to pop into view...

Patriots Go 11 And 5 But Miss Playoffs

The Patriots finished off their regular season with a 13-0 win over the Bills and an 11-5 record, but it just wasn’t enough for a playoff berth in the hotly contended AFC.

The Dolphins clinched the AFC East Division Championship when they beat the Jets today, even though they finished the season tied with the Pats at 11-5 overall and 4-2 in their division, by virtue of a conference record tie breaker (Dolphins 8-4, Pats 7-5).

Chances of a Patriots wildcard spot went down in flames today also, when the Ravens beat the Jags, finishing 11-5 and clinching one of the two wildcard spots by virtue of the same conference record tie breaker (Ravens 8-5). The Colts had already locked up the other spot.

Although I’m bitterly disappointed that the Patriots season is over, especially since the craptastic Cardinals made the cut with a 9-7 record, I have to give the homeboys credit. They did way better than we could have expected this season, and had really jelled into a first level team, finishing off their impressive 11-5 season with a 4 game winning streak. I’ve said before that I’ve seen some pretty bad Patriots teams in my day, and this isn’t one of them.

Kudos to Matt Cassel for a season well played. He grew into his roll a little more each week, and was playing like a veteran down the stretch. He’s certainly a better quarterback than most that will start next week. The Patriots stable of standout receivers helped out a great deal, but it still comes down to on field decisions, and the kid is getting very good at them. He becomes a free agent now, and I hope he does well for himself and gets the payday he deserves.

That being said, if Brady is the least bit questionable for the start of next season, the Pats have got to franchise him. 14 mil for one season isn’t too shabby...

So, thanks to all the players and coaching staff. They gave us their all, even though the season looked dismal from day one. Hey, it sucks having the season end so early, but if we know anything about this team, it’s that they’ll be back next year with a vengeance.

For now, I’m holding out hope for a Falcons-Dolphins Super Bowl showdown. How can you not love Ryan and Pennington? It would sure beat an all Manning Bowl. I'd have to smash all my TVs if that happened.

Casell Throws For 415 Yards, Pats Defeat Dolphins 48-28

Wow. How about those Patriots?

You've gotta love this team, and you’ve gotta love Matt Casell. He’s really developing nicely, spreading the ball around, throwing strikes, and moving when he needs to. This was his second straight game throwing for over 400 yards, putting him in some pretty elite company, and he also got his second rushing touchdown of the season. This guy will not be denied.

Moss also had three touchdown catches today, passing old teammate Chris Carter and moving into 3rd place in NFL career touchdowns. Check out the Game Notes and Quick Hits on Patriots.com for more details.

Patriot Nation, You May Now Exhale.

Hey, we're 2 for 2 this week. The Large Hadron Collider didn't wipe out humanity, and the first game of the "Cassel Era" wasn't the disaster most predicted.

Not bad. Not bad at all.

Belichick, and the defense, seem to own Farve, and that certainly was a big factor in the win, but Cassel did a pretty admirable job out there himself.

This is a really good team. If the kid continues to play smart and grow in the position, I should be able to cut back on the Zantac soon.

Pats 19, Jets 10. Full recap here on the Patriots website.