Matt Cassel named AFC Offensive Player of the Week

The Patriots Team website just reported the following and I thought it was worth a shout out to our QB:

The NFL has named Matt Cassel the AFC's Offensive Player of the Week following his 415-yard performance at Miami in which he threw for three touchdowns and also ran for a score. The honor is Cassel's second Offensive Player of the Week award this season, and he joins Indianapolis' Peyton Manning as the only AFC players to win the award twice this year. Cassel was also named AFC Offensive Player of the Week following the Patriots' 41-7 win over Denver in Week Seven.

Cassel threw for 415 yards against Miami, marking the fifth time in NFL history a quarterback has totaled 400 or more passing yards in back-to-back games. He led the Patriots' offense to 530 total net yards (the second-highest total in team history) while throwing for three touchdowns and rushing for another. Cassel became the first player to have 400 passing yards in back-to-back games since Tennessee’s Billy Volek did it in 2004 (426 yards on 12/13/04 and 492 yards on 12/19/04). In addition to Volek, the other NFL passers to have achieved the feat are San Diego’s Dan Fouts in 1982 (444 yards on 12/11/82 and 435 yards on 12/20/82), Miami’s Dan Marino in 1984 (470 yards on 12/2/84 and 404 yards on 12/9/84) and the New York Giants’ Phil Simms in 1985 (432 yards on 10/6/85 and 513 yards on 10/13/85).

Cassel has two career 400-yard passing games, joining Drew Bledsoe as the only Patriots quarterbacks to pass for 400 yards or more in two or more games. Bledsoe had four 400-yard passing games with the Patriots (two in 1994, one in 1996 and one in 1998). The other Patriots players to achieve the feat are Tom Brady (1), Tony Eason (1), Steve Grogan (1) and Tom Ramsey (1). Cassel’s 415 passing yards against the Dolphins are the fifth-highest single-game total in team history, trailing only four performances by Drew Bledsoe. Cassel’s 415 passing yards against the Dolphins were the most for a Patriots player in exactly 10 years, dating back to Bledsoe’s 423 yard performance against the Dolphins at Foxboro Stadium on Nov. 23, 1998.