Breaking Down The Quarterbacks: Matt Cassel

After taking a look at EJ Manuel, the incumbent in the three-man position battle, just over a week ago, it’s time to turn our attention to one of the front-runners – Matt Cassel.

After coming to the Bills via a trade with the Minnesota Vikings earlier this off-season, Cassel might have seemed like the logical choice to take over as the starting quarterback. And if you ask the majority of the members in the national media, it might have seemed like there wouldn’t even be a position battle.

However, after Cassel’s struggles in OTAs the door has been left wide open.

"“Safe to say we won’t have LeBron at Quarterback. We may have a LeBron at defensive tackle or defensive end, but we don’t have him at quarterback. I don’t think will see anything during minicamp that will say ‘Hey this guy is our starter,’ that’s not going to happen.  We’re going to keep that competition going and at least give guys opportunities when it’s tackle football.”– Rex Ryan"

Luckily it’s only the second day of minicamp and there is plenty of time left for Cassel to build some more chemistry with the offensive weapons he has in his arsenal.

What separates Cassel from Manuel and Tyrod Taylor is his experience. Cassel has started 71 games in his 11-year career, which is more than Manuel and Taylor combined – even quintupled.

And Cassel’s game compares to last year’s starter Kyle Orton. The 11-year vet won’t make too many mistakes, but won’t make many big plays either. He’d be more of a caretaker for the Bills’ offense this year.

This is why analysts and media members around the nation view Cassel as the safest and possibly smartest choice for Rex Ryan and Co. if the Bills want to make the playoffs. Both former NFL quarterback Tim Hasselbeck and and former NFL head coach Greg Schiano stated their cases about Cassel Wednesday on SportsCenter.

"“Cassel has the most experience. He had a season where he won double-digit games in the NFL, that’s hard to do,” Hasselbeck stated. “I think when you’ve seen the other guys get their opportunities, mainly EJ Manuel, he just hasn’t taken advantage of it. When you have guys essentially given an opportunity on a platter and they don’t run with it, that’s a problem.”– Tim Hasselbeck"

While Hasselbeck’s opinion is slightly off-based when it comes it Manuel, he does have a point. Cassel won 11 games with the New England Patriots in 2008 after Brady went down Week 1. Comparing the New England’s 2008 roster to Buffalo’s 2015 team, it’s easy to make a case for Buffalo to have more talent. So with the veteran quarterback at the helm, it’s very possible the Bills could be an 11-win team, as well.

Cassel’s experience certainly gives him the leg up heading into training camp, but will that be enough to win the starting job come Week 1? That is the question.