MMQB Review: Reporting By Guessing and (Finally) a Matt Cassel Update

Peter King gives us some good reported information this morning, unfortunately none of it is actually information from actual people or sources that Peter has. It is instead based on educated guesses Peter has. That's always useful.

I know I already spoiled it in the title but we also get an update on Matt Cassel's situation in New England. Did he sign his tender or not? More importantly, why are we so worried about the status of a backup quarterback when there are about 14 other players who were franchise tagged? Those are the questions I am dying to have answered.

Let's get to the guesses.

I think Ray Lewis will seriously consider leaving the Ravens.

(Cue creepy horror film music)

I wonder what tells Peter this? Could it be because Ray Lewis has not signed with the Ravens yet or DeMarcus Ware of the Cowboys was quoted as saying Lewis told him he wanted to play for the Cowboys?

I love how on certain issues Peter actually makes an effort to give the player a call and find out what is happening, while in other situations it doesn't seem like me makes much of an effort. Maybe Ray would not return his phone calls and Peter was making an effort but it doesn't seem that way.

Will he go? Don't know. But my guess -- and it's an educated guess, nothing more -- is Lewis, who turns 34 in May, will not get a deal done with the Ravens before Friday,

There we go. That's exactly what I am looking for from an NFL Insider, an educated guess. Why actually look for information when you can get an educated guess? Thanks for the information. If I wanted information where there was no actual reporting done, I would go to TMZ.

Wouldn't that be amazing: Ray Lewis with the star on his helmet. Or Ray Lewis coming to the Jets.

Seriously, amazing? Amazing is that I watched a UFO Hunters episode this weekend about how airline pilots and even NORAD had reported multiple sightings of UFO's and there was the black box conversation that proved it. That's amazing to me.

An elderly NFL player who is a free agent choosing to play for one of two teams that have a recent history of trying to sign players that were good 5 years ago...not amazing. The Cowboys are not relevant in my world because they have to win a playoff game before I take them seriously and the Jets, are the Jets. I see nothing amazing about Ray Lewis going to the Jets.

Simply because Lewis may go to one of the NFL's cherised and overly loved teams doesn't make this an even more important story than it should be. Though if Lewis goes to Dallas, I am sure ESPN will have the first sit down interview with him and Terrell Owens, where Keyshawn Johnson asks tough questions like, "Ray, were you concerned about T.O.'s past behavior before you signed with Dallas," and "Ray, would you still hit T.O. if he went over the middle in practice?" Then everyone would laugh because everyone already knows T.O. never goes over the middle whether it be in practice or in games.

This could be a case where the Ravens -- with $19.4 million to spend under the 2009 cap -- might be forced to match a financial package that would simply be too much for the new Ryan-less regime to stomach. It'll be an interesting week in Baltimore.

Whoa. Are you suggesting the Ravens overpay for Ray Lewis? This is contradicts your own fellow writer/ex-athlete/fellow genius Ross Tucker who says the Ravens should not overpay for Ray Lewis. We have dueling educated guesses here at CNNSI.com!

There's no long line waiting to pry Albert Haynesworth from the Titans.

This doesn't shock me. The media hyped up Haynesworth all year long and it got tiresome. I took a look at his numbers at the beginning of free agency and they did not overwhelm me that much. I don't know how many times I have read message boards encouraging my favorite team to sign him. He has played in 60 of possible 90 games over his career, has character issues, and has 24 sacks for his career with 35% of them coming in his contract year. Not the kind of player you want to give a lot of money to.

In the end, my guess is Snyder will pay up and grab him. He's the kind of trophy player Snyder would love to have, and the kind of player, if healthy, who will really help the Redskins close the gap on the Giants in the NFC East.

Great, I love guesses! I know there is no real information on where players are going to sign as of yet, but what's the point of having Peter King around if he can't get SOME information? That's what he does, he calls around and gets information, then reports it. Or this is what he should do.

Considering the Redskins were last in the NFC East last year, they may want to close the gap on Philadelphia and Dallas first before worrying about the Giants.

The Falcons are going to release Michael Vick.

Wh-Wh-What? No team wanted to trade for an overrated quarterback that is currently in jail on federal charges? I am shocked and awed.

I can't figure out a landing spot for Matt Cassel,

How about on your lap?

but I'll be surprised if he's a Patriot on July 1.

If he surprises you and is a Patriot in July 1, will you shut the hell up about him?

Cassel did sign his franchise tender, by the way;

Whew, I was worried about what the backup quarterback for the Patriots was going to do.

Ok, now cue Peter King's massive love for the New England Patriots and Matt Cassel...

I'm surprised that a quarterback who played as well as Cassel did for the last 10 weeks of the season is being viewed by most people in the league as too risky to chart a long-term course with.

What person in their right mind would be suspicious of a quarterback who goes 11-5 with a team that went 16-0 the previous season? Come on, you have a sample size of sixteen games to work from! That's plenty of information to judge Cassel on...He led a team that was 16-0 the year before to a record of 11-5, doesn't that say something other than the fact the Patriots have a good team with or without Tom Brady?

Peter wants you to ignore the fact the Patriots went 2-4 against the playoff teams last year and in those games Cassel had a completion percentage of 58%, a 7/6 TD:INT ratio, and 4 of his 5 worst games in passer rating were against the playoff teams he played. Sure, those are cherry picked numbers, but they are also what Cassel did against teams that did not have 49ers, Seahawks, Rams, Chiefs, or Raiders in their names. Cassel was not an elite quarterback this year and he was playing with a supporting cast that was elite on offense and with a genius head coach. If someone was really stupid, they would ignore these facts and sign Cassel to a massive deal. Peter King seems to ignore these facts.

I still think I'd rather have Cassel as my quarterback of the future than, say, Matthew Stafford. And the money's not that much different.

This doesn't shock me.

I think Cassel and Todd Haley would make beautiful music together.

I have nothing against Matt Cassel, I really don't, though I get to hear about him every other week in a Peter King column and it does annoy me. Other than the fact he went 11-5 for a team that went 16-0 the year before, I don't know too much about him as a quarterback and reqally have no way of judging him. He seems like he would be a great quarterback for the Patriots system, but I would be surprised if you put him on a lesser team, not to mention a team in such disarray as the Chiefs, and he succeeded. I could be wrong.

Let's say the Patriots asked Kansas City for its second-round pick in 2009 and 2010. Pioli values picks in the thirties the way most team value picks in the teens. I'd be stunned if he did it. I think he'd trust Haley to pick a Josh Freeman in this draft in the third round,

Now we have a real problem. How would a genius like Belichick let a quarterback like Josh Freeman slip all the way to the 3rd round and let the genius Pioli get him there? I don't know how the NFL is going to survive having two geniuses in the league. It may sense when they worked for the same team but now there is just genius chaos.

Once, when Stafford's visage appeared on ESPN during a training session, Pedroia yelled out, "Oh look! We're in the presence of GREATNESS!''

That Pedroia...what a kidder and he really doesn't seem like an obnoxious asshole at all. I bet if I met him face to face, I would not want to kick his ass because he seems like he has a big mouth.

I wish Stafford has just laughed at Pedroia and reminded him he was going to be as wealthy as him very soon, at a younger age, AND he can shop in the men's section at stores, then stepped on that annoying little midget.

Nnamdi Asomugha and Larry Fitzgerald are going to be the kind of quasi-Lebronish millionaires this game has never seen, other than at the quarterback position, before they retire.

I'm exaggerating about the Lebron James comparison, of course, because he'll make in excess of $300 million playing basketball by age 30. But non-quarterbacks earning $125 million, $150 million, in a career? That's mind-bogglingly inflationary.

Non-quarterbacks earning that much? How is this any more mind boggling than quarterbacks earning that much money? I know Peter has a thing for white quarterbacks, but any player earning that much in his career is mind boggling to me.

It had to do with the contract the Raiders negotiated with agents Tom Condon and Ben Dogra for Nnamdi Asomugha. Put simply, this is the kind of revolutionary contract that will reverberate around the league for this entire off-season. Maybe longer.

This was an insane contract and only the Raiders would be dumb enough to give it to a player when they so many more pressing needs.

Asomugha's average pay per year is $5.77-million per year more than Samuel's, or 62 percent more than any cornerback contract ever. Good for him. And good for the Raiders in one way -- they don't lose their best player, and because they don't force a franchise tag on him, they don't have their best player grousing about what a bad team he's on ... at least for now. But in this economy?

I get a little tired of everyone talking about "in this economy?" when it comes to player contracts. Team revenues are going to be hit fairly hard by the economy but that is not going to stop teams from signing their best players to massive contract extensions because they still want to put a quality product on the field.

Factoid of the Week That May Interest Only Me

You won't see the Jets or the Giants at home on Monday Night Football this year, the same way you saw neither team in a Monday-nighter in East Rutherford last year. Seems the league is being sympathetic to the needs of the construction site at the stadium -- the teams will share a new stadium at the Meadowlands beginning in 2010 -- and a lack of parking in and around the stadium when there is active construction makes a weekday night game a major headache.

Yep, that only interests you.

A factoid is defined as, "a spurious — unverified, incorrect, or fabricated — statement formed and asserted as a fact, but with no veracity."

Basically Peter King is saying that this statement has absolutely no truth to it and may in fact be false. I really doubt he realizes this.

I shook the guy's hand and thanked him for coming over. After three rounds of beers and appetizers, I had to take off for a pre-arranged dinner.

3 beers? Peter better watch that Blood Alcohol Content level, even though you did eat three rounds of appetizers. Seriously, I hope that is a fucking joke or I am intentionally misreading this to make funnier, though I can see Peter launching his massively round, stubby fingers into an avalanche of nachos and cheese, then some potato skins, and finally ordering a plate of fries covered in chili sauce. Who the hell orders "rounds" of appetizers? Beers, sure, but "rounds" of food?

I can't believe Peter would go out and eat all that food in this economy. You know he gets comped for that meal by either NBC, SI, or one of the other companies he works for, so that is just a waste of money...and he does that in this economy.

b. I asked Sanchez how he's going to overcome the inexperience stigma, because he threw the ball only 313 times in college. "Matt Cassel,'' he said. "He never started a game in college, and look at him.

Yeah, he was a backup for three years and now is stuck behind the NFL's best quarterback (or at least the second best) unless he gets traded. Any team looking for a franchise quarterback is going to want Sanchez to compare himself to a bit more accomplished quarterback. If I were Sanchez I would compare myself to Tom Brady or any other quarterback who has succeeded in the NFL over more than a two year time span but did not play much in college.

Plus, I played the best defense in the country every day in practice, ones against ones, at USC.''

Not the same thing as a real game. I really think Sanchez could fall in the draft. I am probably completely wrong but I just don't know how I feel about his pro prospects. If the semi-success of another USC QB and the fact he practiced against a good defense are reasons the thinks he could succeed in the NFL, then I really am not sure I like his prospects at all.

c. I'll tell you who looks like a man. Brian Orakpo. The Texas defensive end, at 6-4 and a rockish 260, looks like he'll be ready to play opening day for somebody. He's trying to model himself after Osi Umenyiora of the Giants.

Meet this year's Chris Long. The guy Peter will talk about all the time and eventually mention how the Patriots really wanted him and that is where he should have gone in the draft.

k. I don't care one bit about Michael Crabtree's stress fracture in his foot. He's been playing with it, and it can be repaired perfectly with the implantation of some screws. Players have survived and flourished with similar injuries, and I can't see any reason why he still shouldn't be the sixth or eighth pick in the draft.

Peter King doesn't care, because he is just so damn defiant. The Seahawks would have to be declared mentally deficient if they don't draft him at No. 4 and if the Bengals lose both T.J. and Chad Johnson, they should look at him as well. They may as well give up on upgrading their defense, because with Chris Henry as the top receiver Carson Palmer will get "hurt" again this year.

4. I think I know these two things don't go hand-in-hand, but the Carolina Panthers just laid off 20 employees.

Hey, I know where this is going...

You're telling me in a week you commit $60 million to Jordan Gross for six years, and $16.5 million for one year to Julius Peppers, that you've got to whack 20 employees?

I am sorry, this is laughable. Are teams supposed to not sign and re-sign players to the football team because the front office is having some issues with keeping the staff around? It sucks to have to fire employees, it really does, but I can't believe an "experienced" NFL insider would be shocked at this. If the Panthers don't sign Gross and franchise Peppers they become free agents and the team is weaker and another team signs those players making them stronger. I hate it when normal people get laid off, but this should not shock anyone that players get re-signed for millions at the same time. I would never want to get laid off and I feel bad for those that have this happen to them, but the players are the most irreplaceable staff members.

I also find it ironic that Peter questions how NFL teams are spending their money when Sports Illustrated is laying off employees and they still find enough money for Peter to pay for his hotel rooms, food, travel expenses, and probably overly generous salary to go to the Scouting Combine and God knows where else. I realize Peter is a really important person but I think they could save some money by not paying for Peter to go to the Scouting Combine and everywhere else he goes in the country, but they would rather not do that because they don't want to dilute their product. It is very similar to what Carolina did.

Also, considering Peppers is now the most wanted defensive player who is sort of "on the market" and Gross got the 2nd highest contract a offensive lineman has ever received, I think it is kind of bullshit this is the only mention these two events get. I don't need Peter to mention events concerning my favorite team, but to give full reports on the Matt Cassel and Mike Vick situations and pretty much ignoring these events is not being the best journalist you can be.

This is from a purely neutral point of view, as much as I can be, because I actually have never really liked Julius Peppers...but to cover Matt Cassel repeatedly in such in depth coverage and to completely ignore the Julius Peppers situation, except in passing comments, reeks of journalistic bias. I don't care where Peppers goes, I just want him gone, but I think Peter should break down where he could go or anything related to the situation, just like he has done for Matt Cassel innumberable amounts of times.

teams need to show loyalty to the people who've worked hard for them -- people not at the top of the salary foodchain.

Says the guy who did not get laid off from Sports Illustrated while his traveling expenses are still being covered by the company.

9. I think some cornerbacks and some defensive linemen are going to make an awful lot of money Friday morning.

Only the teams that have not had staff member layoffs will sign these player though. Right Peter?

a. Kate Winslet is so real. I'm glad she won Best Actress. Was that one of the great Oscar speeches you've ever seen?

Why is it when an actor/actress has a real life body weight or image, the press constantly makes them seem like more real people? She is married to a high profile director, has been nominated six times for Academy Awards and is a millionaire. That is not the definition of real. She seems like a great person but shut up about this.

e. You had a chance, A-Rod. You had a chance to do the honorable thing and say you either made a mistake or flat-out lied about Selena Roberts breaking into your home and stalking you and your children, which is patently wrong. You didn't do it. You should be ashamed.

Yes, A-Rod should be. I agree. Speaking of Selena "The Dude" Roberts, where is she on uncovering those other 103 names on the steroid list? I guess she has sold enough books and doesn't feel the need to do this. Again, not defending A-Rod, but there are other players on that list and I would love to know who they are. At this point pretty much every meaningful record set in the past 10 years is under question and, on a personal note, it would make me feel very good to see Mike Piazza's name on the list. He has made me sad many times and I need revenge.

f. I got the Blackberry Storm. Phones are never going to be the same again.

For those that can afford a Blackberry Storm, this is great news. I can't believe Peter King is bragging about his brand new fancy phone that very few people can afford...and doing it in this economy?