Could Matt Cassel End Up With the New York Jets in 2009?

The Matt Cassel bandwagon is taking on passengers, and deservedly so. After a shaky start to the season, Cassel has thrown for 400 yards in back-to-back games, and as Peter King so excitedly explains to us every Sunday night, the lifetime backup stands to make a lot of money this offseason.

He'll be an unrestricted free agent, and assuming he doesn't return to New England to resume his role as "that guy on the depth chart behind Tom Brady," there are plenty of teams that could be interested in his services.

During today's CBS Pregame Show, Charley Casserly's hair speculated on potential destinations for Cassel.

"If I'm Matt Cassel, here's what I do: I want to go with a team that has a chance to win. Who are those team? Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay -- both could be in the playoff this year -- and one other team I'd call ... how about the arch rival, the New York Jets? That's right, good football team, new stadium, [they] pay their players well, and Brett Favre may not come back -- they'll need a starting quarterback. That would really add a lot to that rivalry.

And guess what? Next year's opening game? Matt Cassel and Tom Brady. We could see that.

Yes, that certainly would add something to the rivalry.

And, ultimately, this will all depend on Favre, who has a history of indecision when discussing his retirement plans. Also worth mentioning: Cassel has had the great fortune to play with one of the most explosive offenses ever assembled.

And while the Jets have improved as Favre has grown more comfortable in the system, is there any indication that Cassel will duplicate or improve on that? I'm not convinced, particularly if it costs New York upwards of six million a year.

But we're still in Week 13; let's not get too far ahead of ourselves.