Don't look now Pats fans, but Tom Brady may not play NEXT season either.

[BulletproofLandshark]

http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/for_the_record/posts/36122?eref=fromSI

Ruh roh!

With Matt Cassel being a free agent next year, the Patriots are stuck between a rock and a hard place now. They can either let Cassel leave (possibly to a division rival like the Jets) and hope Brady's ready to play (or face a season with Kevin O' Connell as their starter). Or they can resign Cassel to a long term deal and be possibly forced to do the unthinkable: trade Brady. I don't envy the position the Patriots brass finds themselves in right now.

[Forkboy]

1. They're going to franchise Cassel.

Matt has sure earned himself a hefty paycheck next year, and he'll get it one or the other. But I think the Pats will keep him, unless Brady shows better than expected progress this Spring.

[Angleae]

2. Isn't this how Brady got his jot in the first place?

Easy come, easy go.

[Arkana]

3. Franchise Cassel, watch a dozen NFL teams wail and gnash their teeth,

and enjoy.

[MrSlayer]

4. The Pats can franchise or, and this is more likely, transition Cassel.

They will not franchise him because there is no way they are going to pay him the average of the top 5 salaries at his position. No way. They couldn't swing paying this guy 10 million dollars no matter what they wanted to do because of the cap. And there is also no way they are trading Brady, who is the best QB in the league. If they transition Cassel they'd have to pay him the average of the top 10 at his position (still a pretty penny but not 10 million) and they have right to match any offer made to him. If he signs away with another team for big money they get high picks as compensation. Expect him to be transitioned and to be signed away with the Pats to get nice picks out of it.

[Angleae]

6. They have the money to do it.

They have about $25 million until the 2008 cap (and the 2009 cap will be higher).

[madinmaryland]

5. From a deadskin fan, this is worthless.

:pffth:

[TZ]

7. are you trying to find every Skins fan on this board and piss them off?

If you are..good job...:rofl:

[BulletproofLandshark]

9. What does that have to do with anything?

I guess this is just a symptom of your continuing bitterness over your choking dog of a "team" burning out in yet another clutch situation. The fact that Dallas was the presumed SB favorite and that they couldn't even make it to 10-6 OR the 6th seed is hilarious! I've never seen a team quit so completely as Dallas did at Philly. They have a perennial failure for a head coach, a vastly overrated QB who always folds in crunch time, and NO hope of winning anything of consequence with the roster they have.

As I write this, Philly just scored on the Vikes to make it 23-14 with 6 1/2 minutes left. That's called "winning in the playoffs." Just figured I remind you what that's like since you haven't seen that sort of thing since the Spice Girls were at the top of the charts.

[TZ]

11. BWAHAHAHA!

I think he's made it his mission to taunt all the Skins fans on this board out of frustration indeed. Please note that my entire sigline is dedicated to him...:rofl:

[underpants]

8. Which to choose-the guy who didn't make the playoffs or...

TOM BRADY???

:think:

This sounds like a post from Cassel's agent

[BulletproofLandshark]

10. LOL, I didn't mean for it to sound that way.

I'm just saying it's tough to ignore the quandary they'll find themselves in in the offseason. If Brady were healthy, then yes by all means you let Cassel leave and carry on with your 3-time SB winner. But as it stands, if Cassel leaves in free agency and Brady isn't ready to go, the Pats could be looking at a lost season.

[BulletproofLandshark]

12. It looks like Cassel will be franchised...

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-patriots-cassel&prov=ap&type=lgns