Sam Hall
03-03-2009, 10:27 AM
• Free agency opened over the weekend and while there was a flurry of activity it was all overshadowed by a single trade. In case you've been living in a cave and don't know what I'm talking about the New England Patriots shipped QB Matt Cassel and LB Mike Vrabel to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for a 2nd round pick (#34 overall) in the 2009 NFL Draft.
From the Chiefs point of view this was a no-brainer and you have to give their new general manager Scott Pioli a ton of credit. Pioli is considered to be one of the best personnel men in the business and deals like this are the reason why. Like all good football minds Pioli recognizes the importance of the quarterback position and when he realized his new franchise didn't have one he rectified the situation. Kansas City may look to sign the 26-year-old Cassel to a long-term deal in the near future but they do have the option of just letting him play out the 2009 season under that one-year, $14.6 million franchise tag to make sure he's the real deal. If Cassel is as good as many feel he is the Chiefs are set under center for the next decade. As an added bonus this deal also allows Kansas City to bypass the quarterbacks and address another one of their myriad of other needs with that #3 overall pick in April. Don't sleep on the Mike Vrabel aspect of the trade either. Vrabel is undoubtedly nearing the end of his career but he still has a little gas left in the tank and more importantly will serve as a team leader and mentor on their young defense. There is nothing not to like about this move from the Chiefs perspective and with a single transaction Pioli has essentially put the franchise's massive rebuilding efforts on a fast-track.
As for New England, there is no question that the Patriots could have gotten more for Cassel had they shopped him around but they were motivated to get that $14 million off their cap as soon as possible so they could make some moves in free agency. Other teams came in late offering a better package but by then Belichick had already agreed to a deal with the Chiefs. Did Pioli's relationship with his old organization help him in making this trade? Absolutely. However, he was the one who was proactive and made something happen and shame on those other quarterback-needy teams (Tampa Bay! Detroit! Minnesota!) for sitting on their hands when they had an amazing opportunity to acquire a good young signal caller at a very reasonable price. Don't shed any tears for the Pats though because while they didn't get the king's random for Cassel that many imagined they still hold a first round pick (#23) and three second rounders (#34, #47 and #58) in the upcoming draft. That puts them in prime position to supplement a roster that is already Super Bowl-caliber with a lot of good young talent. Talk about the rich getting richer! Oh, and they will have to try and replace Cassel under center with some guy named Tom Brady.
One final thought: There are many who feel the Detroit Lions shouldn't take a quarterback with the #1 overall pick but I hope they noticed that the first thing Pioli did was bring in a top signal caller. He's only credited as being a key architect of a team that won three Super Bowls though so what does he know...
http://www.draftcountdown.com/blog/Wright-Stuff-Blog.php
From the Chiefs point of view this was a no-brainer and you have to give their new general manager Scott Pioli a ton of credit. Pioli is considered to be one of the best personnel men in the business and deals like this are the reason why. Like all good football minds Pioli recognizes the importance of the quarterback position and when he realized his new franchise didn't have one he rectified the situation. Kansas City may look to sign the 26-year-old Cassel to a long-term deal in the near future but they do have the option of just letting him play out the 2009 season under that one-year, $14.6 million franchise tag to make sure he's the real deal. If Cassel is as good as many feel he is the Chiefs are set under center for the next decade. As an added bonus this deal also allows Kansas City to bypass the quarterbacks and address another one of their myriad of other needs with that #3 overall pick in April. Don't sleep on the Mike Vrabel aspect of the trade either. Vrabel is undoubtedly nearing the end of his career but he still has a little gas left in the tank and more importantly will serve as a team leader and mentor on their young defense. There is nothing not to like about this move from the Chiefs perspective and with a single transaction Pioli has essentially put the franchise's massive rebuilding efforts on a fast-track.
As for New England, there is no question that the Patriots could have gotten more for Cassel had they shopped him around but they were motivated to get that $14 million off their cap as soon as possible so they could make some moves in free agency. Other teams came in late offering a better package but by then Belichick had already agreed to a deal with the Chiefs. Did Pioli's relationship with his old organization help him in making this trade? Absolutely. However, he was the one who was proactive and made something happen and shame on those other quarterback-needy teams (Tampa Bay! Detroit! Minnesota!) for sitting on their hands when they had an amazing opportunity to acquire a good young signal caller at a very reasonable price. Don't shed any tears for the Pats though because while they didn't get the king's random for Cassel that many imagined they still hold a first round pick (#23) and three second rounders (#34, #47 and #58) in the upcoming draft. That puts them in prime position to supplement a roster that is already Super Bowl-caliber with a lot of good young talent. Talk about the rich getting richer! Oh, and they will have to try and replace Cassel under center with some guy named Tom Brady.
One final thought: There are many who feel the Detroit Lions shouldn't take a quarterback with the #1 overall pick but I hope they noticed that the first thing Pioli did was bring in a top signal caller. He's only credited as being a key architect of a team that won three Super Bowls though so what does he know...
http://www.draftcountdown.com/blog/Wright-Stuff-Blog.php