KANSAS CITY, Mo. - For one half at least, Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel almost had Kansas City believing in him.
Almost.
Instead, Cassel did little on Sunday to change the mood of Kansas City fans who booed him loudly this summer when he was introduced at Kauffman Stadium during a celebrity softball game as part of the All-Star week festivities.
Those fans were booing Cassel again Sunday across the parking lot at Arrowhead Stadium after Cassel almost single-handedly took his team out of the game with three consecutive turnovers in the second half. Those miscues helped nail down a 40-24 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
The Chiefs, behind Cassel at his absolute best, had hung tight with the Falcons, trailing only 20-17 at the half.
Cassel had completed 10 of 12 passes for 123 yards and one touchdown in the first 30 minutes. He also had scored on a 5-yard run, his first rushing touchdown since his days with the New England Patriots.
Chiefs fans perhaps didn't even recognize Cassel, who was pinpoint sharp on his passes and showed awareness and courage in the pocket. His only incompletions, in fact, came on a tipped ball and a dropped pass.
But after another good drive to open the second half in which Cassel again showed some ruggedness by converting a third down with a 3-yard run, it all went wrong for the Chiefs and Cassel.
First, that drive wound up producing no points because Ryan Succop doinked a 40-yard field goal attempt off the right upright that would have tied the score at 20-20.
The Falcons subsequently marched to a touchdown and a 27-17 lead.
Then the Matt Cassel that Chiefs fans are all too familiar with took over.
On a third down at his own 15, Cassel was sacked and stripped of the ball. The fumble recovery by Atlanta led to another touchdown and it was 34-17.
On the next possession, Cassel was picked by Atlanta's William Moore, as Chiefs fans began to rain boos down upon Cassel. That pick led to a Falcons' field goal and a 37-17 lead.
Cassel wasn't through, though. On his very next possession, he was picked again on a horrible pass thrown against his body. Atlanta linebacker Stephen Nicholas easily stepped in front of the throw. That led to the Falcons' final points, another field goal, a 40-17 lead, and another chorus of boos.
It also virtually emptied out Arrowhead.
Cassel finished the day 21 of 33 for 258 yards, which are not embarrassing numbers. But keep in mind that he was just 11 of 21 with two interceptions in the second half.
Asked what the difference was in the second half, Cassel said, “I think they just outplayed us in the second half, and again, we had the turnovers. Anytime we have turnovers – first one strips out, second one was a tip, third one was me trying to force a play, make a play. To do something like that is just stupid at that point in the game. You got to throw that away and pump the ball and move forward.”
To be fair, this was not the type of game that would bring out the best in Cassel. He is not Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers, and actually he is even a far cry from Matt Ryan, his counterpart on Sunday.
Cassel is not comfortable in a shootout, which Sunday clearly turned into. While Ryan seemed confident throughout, Cassel seemed out of his realm as the Falcons continued to answer each Chiefs' score.
And that is ultimately what frustrates Chiefs fans about their quarterback situation the most: In this era of big-play passing and big-play quarterbacks, they know the Chiefs cannot compete at the same shootout level that other teams – playoff teams – can.
What Cassel can do is lead a team with a terrific running game and a stingy defense, neither of which were really available to him on Sunday. The Chiefs did get 87 yards out of tailback Jamaal Charles, including one hold-your-breath 46-yard run.
But the ground game couldn't be sustained because the Chiefs' defense – minus four starters – couldn't put up the slightest resistance against Ryan and the Falcons' offense.
So, Cassel tried to become something he's not, a gunslinger, though he did a pretty good impression for 30 minutes. But the real Cassel showed up in the second half, just in time for Chiefs fans to remember why they've been booing him all this time in the first place.
