The Minnesota Vikings gave up their most explosive player on the team when they traded wide receiver Percy Harvin to the Seattle Seahawks for draft picks and while that left a big hole on the offense, they have decided to try and fill it with Matt Cassel, signing him after he was released by the Chiefs on Thursday.
According to CBSSports.com, Cassel agreed to a contract just hours after getting cut and could compete with Christian Ponder for the starting position, as he has had just 4,788 yards, 31 touchdowns and 25 interceptions while starting 26 games for the Vikings. The team could use him as a backup, as they said that Joe Webb will need to win back his job behind Ponder.
Cassel made the Pro Bowl in 2010, but hasn't done much since, including last year when he went just 1-7 before getting injured and replaced. Webb has been solid behind Ponder the past two years, but he has a lot to prove to keep his spot.
The team needs to upgrade on offense after trading Percy Harvin and Cassel could provide some options for the team going forward.
The Vikings were one of the lowest rated passing teams in the NFL and even if Ponder doesn't get hurt, Cassel could compete with him for the starting job next season since he didn't exactly wow everyone last year.
Cassel became expendable in Kansas City after the team traded for Alex Smith and it was likely Andy Reid wanted to start over once he took over the job. Cassel signed a large six-year contract with the team after he was traded from the Patriots and was a disappointment after taking the team to the playoffs in his first season, as they went just 2-14 last year. Cassel played in just nine games last season and 1,796 yards passing with six touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
The Chiefs have brought in a number of players and are expected to improve, while the Vikings offloaded Harvin and now are looking at Greg Jennings as a possible replacement. Cassel was solid in his one year starting in New England before coming to the Chiefs, playing in all 16 games and passing for 3,693 yards and 21 touchdowns while completing over 60 percent of his passes.
Webb was forced to start in the playoffs after Ponder was hurt and the team lost to the Packers, but that was not all on Webb.
"I still have confidence in Joe," Frazier said. "I feel like he had a tough situation to go into and I'd like to see him compete with whatever we end up doing there, be it a veteran guy or if we draft a guy. But we definitely need to solidify that position and feel good about whoever would have to step up if something were to happen to Christian [Ponder]."
