Matt Cassel Era Begins in New England: Week One Wrap-up

After taking just 15 snaps in the 2008 regular season, Patriots QB Tom Brady was hit in the knee by Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard, a hit which many Pats fans are mistakenly calling "dirty."

The hit was clearly not dirty, as Pollard went in for the sack while Brady was stepping up in the pocket. After the game, Pollard noted, "I tried to apologize to him. But I'm not sure he heard me. He was screaming." Although the MRI results are not in, Brady is expected to be out for the season with a torn ACL. Thus starts the Matt Cassel era in New England.

When Cassel stepped into the game, the Pats and Chiefs were dead even at 0-0. After two failed running plays, the Pats were backed up to their own one-yard line, when Cassel's arm was called upon.

As he avoided pressure, the young QB tossed a ball down the sideline to Randy Moss. Had it been another receiver, the ball most likely would have ended up incomplete, but Moss masked his hands and reached out at the last second for a grab. First down Patriots.

Later on the drive, the Pats were pressuring the Chiefs inside the red zone. Instead of relying on the strong play of RB Sammy Morris, Cassel again looked to throw, hitting Moss in the back of the end zone. Again, it would be hard to imagine any other receiver making this type of catch—especially with the push-out rule gone this year—as Moss barely landed both feet in bounds.

Unfortunately for Cassel, he didn't perform nearly as well during the remainder of the game. His deep passes were more like line drives than tosses, which led to several incompletions. However, the offense wasn't completely stalled. RB Laurence Maroney broke off a big run, and Sammy Morris looked top-notch while breaking through hand-tackles down the field.

At the end of the game, with the Pats up by seven, Chiefs backup QB Damon Huard tossed a pass to WR Devard Darling, who completely fooled S James Sanders and burned down the field towards the end zone. Newly signed CB Deltha O'Neil somehow caught up with the receiver and stopped him within the five-yard line. Four incomplete passes later and the Pats walked off the field as victors.

The game was far too close for comfort, especially against one of the league's worst teams. Hopefully the Pats are able to tailor their offense to Cassel's play, but we truly need to have extremely consistent play out of our running back corps to have a successful year.

Obviously, the loss of Brady is something to worry about, but don't forget Mo Lewis and how he started Brady's career in a very similar fashion when he injured Drew Bledsoe in the 2001 season.

Player Stock Market

Buy

• CB Ellis Hobbs: Made several key stops, a few pass deflections, an interception, and a 51-yard kickoff return. Hobbs was clearly the MVP for the Patriots
• RBs Sammy Morris and Laurence Maroney: Both running backs combined for a strong game when the team needed it the most. Maroney clearly benefits from playing behind a pound-it-out back like Morris.
• QB Matt Cassel: Although he didn't have a great game, he was clearly better than his preseason had shown. At the end of the day, Cassel had thrown zero interceptions—a big win for the questionable QB. He was also 13-of-18 for 152 yards and a TD.
• CB Deltha O'Neil: Saved a game-tying touchdown after James Sanders misplayed his receiver.
• LB Mike Vrabel: Had two key sacks in the game, helping the Pats end several Chiefs drives.

Hold

• WR Jabar Gaffney: The receiver played the most downs out of any offensive skill player, but failed to catch a pass. He didn't drop any, but he wasn't looked to by Matt Cassel. The team clearly sees enough talent in him to play him on so many downs, so he will hopefully have a great year.

Sell

• WR/S Matthew Slater: Dropped a kickoff, the type of play that delegated Troy Brown to the bench last year.
• S James Sanders: His poor play at the end of the game nearly cost the Patriots their victory.