Cue The Violins For Tyler Thigpen

We all know that Tyler Thigpen isn't going to be the next Brett Favre. He can don the future Hall of Famer's number all he wants, but it simply isn't going to happen.

Then again, it doesn't appear that Thigpen will ever really get the chance to prove that theory wrong.

With the offseason trade acquisition of Matt Cassel, the writing is on the wall, despite early reports that the Chiefs will have an open quarterback competition.

I believe that, almost as much as I believe that Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre were ever going to compete last year. The fact is, Favre was never in Green Bay's 2008 plans, and the same goes for Thigpen and Kansas City for 2009.

But before we even begin debating why or why not Thigpen is worthy of the opportunity, there are a few things we have to understand.

First of all, new GM Scott Pioli, New England's former decision-maker, has to right the ship in KC. He's taking over a franchise that used to be fairly competitive, and was even the first AFC representative in the Super Bowl.

In order to do so, he has to start from the ground up. This includes the departure of Herman Edwards, the signing of new coach Todd Haley, the possibly release or trade of Larry Johnson, and building the team back up to respectability through good drafts.

Oh, and making sure his quarterback is capable of running more complex offenses and understanding terminology that's more difficult than the spread.

The "Wildcat offense" is sexy and fun, but if that's all Tyler Thigpen can be effective in, it may have been right for Pioli to pull the trigger on "his guy." Burn to you, Josh McDaniels.

But one has to wonder, that despite only leading the Chiefs to a 2-14 record, if Thigpen is having his leash pulled a bit too soon.

I can't argue that he didn't win games, that his completion percentage was a pedestrian 54.8 percent, and that he had solid talent around him.

Not to mention the fact that his offense was as complicated as a high school rendition of Texas Tech's offense. Which, depending on your interpretation, could still actually be fairly complicated.

I also can't dispute that Thigpen doesn't have any tools that would be considered orthodox or natural. He plays at a high level at an inconsistent rate, and even tailed off near the end of the season.

This is all true. But, then again, what do you expect? Thigpen wasn't drafted. He played for a bad team, and this was truly his first extensive action, making him the equivalent to a rookie.

Considering this, his final line of over 2,600 passing yards, 22 total touchdowns (including an impressive touchdown catch,) and only 12 interceptions are quite impressive.

Oh, and we're still talking about the same guy who opened the season with under 300 passing yards, a sub-40 percent completion percentage, and five interceptions in his first two games.

Since those two dismal performances, Thigpen put up over 2,300 yards, only seven picks, and 16 passing scores.

Thigpen showed good arm strength, tremendous leadership despite countless losses, as well as a Chad Pennington-like fiery passion to play the position.

He also displayed fantastic athleticism on a 47-yard touchdown reception, and also had a 10-game string of at least 20 yards rushing. He pushed that attribute of athleticism even further by totaling 386 yards rushing on the season, while averaging over six yards per carry and three scores.

There's no disputing that Matt Cassel is arguably the better potential quarterback, though. He lead a severely-depleted Patriots team to an 11-5 record, while tossing for 21 scores, growing up in a complex system. He, too, showed a great learning curve and above-average athleticism.

So, my point here, is not that Thigpen is better. It's not even that starting Cassel is the right or wrong move. In fact, it actually isn't even about Thigpen getting to defend his starting status with an open competition (which it has been announce will happen.)

My argument is that when Cassel wins the job (and he will) what will happen to this young gunslinger? Despite winning only two games and showing inconsistent talent, will he only be forgotten, or can something still be made of him?

The reason I ask this is because this guys isn't a washed-up veteran who had one lucky statistical season. He isn't Ryan Leaf. He's not an over-hyped college star or work-out wonder that isn't meeting expectations.

Even as Todd Haley would say it; this kid has "moxie." He's got that extra something that guys like J.P. Losman, Patrick Ramsey, and Chris Simms don't have. He has the Brett Favre swagger, the Alex Smith athleticism, and the same charm that Matt Cassel possesses.

He's a true gamer. The only question is, will we ever see him on the field again?