As expected, Matt Cassel will miss today's game against the Chargers after having his appendix removed this week. This means that the Chargers remaining playoff hopes rest on the shoulders of a young, inexperienced QB by the name of Brodie Croyle.
While he has been in the NFL for a few years now, Croyle has never stood out enough in Kansas City to earn a shot at the starting QB spot. Today's game is by no means an audition for him to take Cassel's spot, but it is an audition to the other 31 teams in the league that might want to sign him as a free agent in this offseason.
The scariest thing about Croyle is the unknown. How good is he? How good could he be? Will being in Charlie Weis' offense make a better QB? Let's take a look at his career regular-season stats:
173/300 (57.7% comp.), 1,631 yds (5.4 Y/A), 8 TDs, 8 INTs
That completion percentage is horrendously low, but nothing else stands out as being much worse than below-average. The best stat of all, and keep in mind that this was all during the Chiefs' "bottom of the division" years, is that Croyle's regular-season record is 0-9 as the starter for Kansas City
Use this post as your open thread for the NFL's early games today, including the Raiders going down to Jacksonville to take on the very-hot Jaguars. If, like me, you had a long Saturday night and are going on very little sleep today....maybe watch those early games, and comment here, with a delicious Bloody Mary in your hand.
ENJOY WITH ABSOLUT RESPONSIBILITY®