Blame Haley For Cassel’s Struggles

[Hammock Parties]

Blame Haley For Cassel’s Struggles

The Chiefs’ offensive troubles continued to linger Sunday as the team failed to put up a single touchdown drive. As the team progressively moves further towards obscurity, who should we point the finger at?

The most likely candidate to feel the wrath of a frustrated Chiefs fan base is starting quarterback Matt Cassel, who in no way resembles the quarterback who led a similar Kansas City offense to the playoffs en route to his first Pro Bowl appearance a year ago.

Did Cassel over achieve in 2010 or is there another problem that hasn’t been brought to light?

After watching his performance the past two weeks, I have to say it is the latter.

It’s hard to sugarcoat the statistics Cassel has put up over the past two weeks, but I will try to make the case. Through two weeks, Cassel has gone 37 of 58 for 252 yards with one touchdown, four interceptions and a quarterback rating of 54.5. He finished the 2010 season with 27 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a quarterback rating of 93.

Say what you want about Cassel, but last year his numbers were not only acceptable for a third-year starter, but undeniably good. So, is Cassel really the one who deserves the finger to be pointed at him or is it the management around him?

Shane Williams, of Warpaint TV, recently pointed out to me that although Cassel had a strong 2010 showing, he made a drastic downhill turn after his performance against the Tennessee Titans in Week 16.

What was the significance of that game? It was the last time former offensive coordinator Charlie Weis was making the play calls. According to Warpaint Illustrated sources, Weis was relieved of his play calling duties during the Chiefs’ victory over the Titans and coincidentally, Weis announced the next week he was leaving the Chiefs to take a job in Florida.

Cassel hasn’t been the same since.

In the Chiefs’ final two games of 2010, Cassel was a forgettable 20 of 51 with no touchdowns, five interceptions and a quarterback rating of 19.75. Through two regular season games in 2011, Cassel is looking less like the quarterback we saw in the first 15 games of 2010 and more like the quarterback we saw the final week against the Raiders and in the playoff game against the Ravens.

Cassel is not blameless in his regression but you can’t ignore the fact that Weis turned Cassel into a Pro Bowl quarterback. In return for his efforts he was relieved of his duties and shipped down to Florida for some family bonding.

The fact that Weis got more out of Cassel than any other coach he’s worked with is undeniable. The fault of letting that coach leave (assuming you believe the Chiefs explanation for the Weis “resignation”) lies at the feet of either Todd Haley or Scott Pioli (or both of them).

Anyone who made the drive to St. Joseph, MO for Chiefs training camp this summer could tell you that Cassel receives little to no support from his head coach. In watching the Chiefs through the preseason, it was apparent that new quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn was doing all he could to shield Cassel from Haley’s negative reinforcement.

Cassel has not been good through two games but the lion’s share of this team’s problems are not at the quarterback position. Cassel threw three interceptions Sunday (although two hit his receivers square in the hands) but how could you blame the guy for taking those kinds of risks?

Haley, who is supposed to have his starter’s back, undermined Cassel’s quarterbacks coach (Weis) during Cassel’s best season. He also seems eager to give the starting job to a journeyman named Tyler Palko.

Cassel is stuck between a rock and a hard place. Until his head coach gets back to coaching receivers instead of trying to be an offensive coordinator/quarterback repressor, Cassel’s production in Kansas City will be limited.

[lcarus]

Originally Posted by jd1020

I absolutely want people circling us on their schedule. That means one thing... that we are good. You think teams arent circling the Patriots, Packers, Steelers, or Saints on their schedule?

Yeah that's not at all what I meant. They aren't circling us because we're good. They're circling us because they have grudges against our coach and GM.

[WhiteWhale]

Originally Posted by Molitoth

Sorry dude, but a good QB makes good receivers... not the other way around.

Manning and Brady consistently make no-names, all stars.

Dante Culpepper's probowl appearances disagree.

You're not wrong that Qb's do more to make WR's look better, but a great WR can cover up QB warts too. I'd rather have a QB making every pass catcher and blocker look better than they are than have 1 WR covering a QB's warts though.

[Molitoth]

Had a higher QB rating than Cam Newton, Jay Cutler and Kerry Collins:

Oh, now that's a grand feat!

[FAX]

I can't believe some of the nonsense that's spewing out of the media today.

I'll tell you what's wrong with Cassel. Cassel.

He is a brainless, spineless, bumbling fool with marginal talent that can be compensated for only with poor competition and a top-of-the-league run game that requires ... no, demands attention.

FAX

[whoman69]

Originally Posted by Ugly Duck

2008 - Named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 7 with a 136.3 passer rating

- Named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 12 after throwing for 415 yards and three touchdowns

- Became the fifth player in NFL history to have back-to-back 400-yard passing games

- In the Patriots' 41-7 victory over the Broncos on Oct. 20, his 136.3 passer rating ranks as the 10th best mark by a Patriots quarterback

- Became the first player to total at least 400 passing yards and at least 60 rushing yards in a game

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Maybe its not Matt Cassel? He seemed to do OK with the Patriots. He wasn't even the worst QB in Week 2. Had a higher QB rating than Cam Newton, Jay Cutler and Kerry Collins:

#32 Luke McCown
#31 Kerry Collins
#30 Jay Cutler
#29 Cam Newton
#28 Matt Cassel
#22 Kyle Orton
#10 Phillip Rivers
#2 Jason Campbell

We go overboard in saying that Check Down is the worst QB in the league. Even so he does not have the talent to guide this team through the playoffs. If he needs Charlie Weis to hold his hand for him to be a passable QB, he probably needs a change of jobs. Any stats that make Check Down look good are highly suspect.

[dallaschiefsfan]

As many have said, this is terrible analysis. If Cassell has tanked since that game due to Haley's yelling at him and pulling him from the game for a series, then he has definitively proven that he is mentally fragile and unable to be succcessful for a sustained period, let alone be a championship QB.

I want a QB that is mentally tough and doesn't need every star to be in alignment for success (i.e. Weiss as his OC, No legit backup QB to help his psyche, all-pros at every skill position, etc.). As I see it, Haley simply knows what he has in Cassell...and he's not going to kiddie-glove him.