Not Realizing You Miss Them Until They’re Gone
By author
If you haven’t heard yet, Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback Matt Cassel had an appendectomy yesterday. The news caught me and most, if not all, fans by surprise. As surprising as that news was, it caused me to come to a realization. I realized that I am on the Matt Cassel bandwagon.
I know some people are going to be reading those words in disbelief that it took me this long to get on board, but you have to understand where I’m coming from. The first year I saw Cassel play in a Chiefs uniform I was not impressed. Don’t get me wrong, I understood that his play was affected by the play of his offensive line. However, even when he was protected he still wasn’t making the plays I expected out of a starting quarterback in the NFL. To give you an idea, at the end of the 2009 season Cassel’s passer rating was 25th in the league only beating out rookie quarterbacks, Jake “My Opponents are My Favorite Receivers” Delhomme, and JaMarcus “Thanks For The Money, Suckers” Russell.
After that first season I wasn’t calling for Cassel’s job because I knew that I hadn’t truly seen what he could do yet. This season I felt that I would truly get a look at Cassel. The offensive line had been improved and the team had been restructured to take the pressure off Cassel and put it more squarely on our running game.
Then I saw Cassel in the preseason and while I saw improvement in some areas, I saw none in other areas. Figuring that it was preseason, I dismissed any worries I had. Then the season started and I started to worry. Cassel’s first two games were bad. His first good game came against a bad team and so I believed it to be an aberration. Even when Cassel really started to play well I saw it more as the poor quality of defenses played than the quality of his play. In spite of the fact that Cassel’s passer rating is now between the Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger.
Finally, now that the possibility of the Chiefs going without Cassel for the final quarter of the season with the playoffs on the line, I realize that I have finally embraced Matt Cassel as the Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback. Before now, I had accepted the fact that he was the best choice we currently had for quarterback. Now, when I look at the Chiefs I see in the future, I see Matt Cassel as our quarterback.
Don’t get me wrong. Cassel is not the perfect quarterback. I still think his deep balls are not thrown well. I think he still has lapses in decision making. He also seems to have many passes tipped. I still don’t see him as an elite quarterback, but I think he can be a good one.
While I still have concerns, I no longer feel as pressed to draft a quarterback in the 2011 draft. Instead I’m more concerned with getting another good wide receiver for Cassel to throw to. Now, instead of looking for a quarterback to train to replace him, I’m looking forward to getting Cassel a good supporting cast so that he can open up and unleash his full potential.
I may be late to the party when it comes to Matt Cassel, but you have to understand that when I decide something I don’t do so lightly. I’m the type of guy who researches for weeks before buying any item over $100. However, once I decide, I’m committed. Part of the reason I’m committed is that I have enough facts to support my position.
So for those of you who are already on the bandwagon, I’m sorry I’m late. For those of you who aren’t yet on board, I understand your position but consider joining. To think, I came to this realization because of something as useless as an appendix. Just goes to show you the old adage is true. Sometimes you don’t miss things until they’re gone.