Matt Cassel accepts Patriots’ franchise tag

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Matt Cassel accepts Patriots’ franchise tag

Matt Cassel has accepted the New England Patriots’ non-exclusive franchise tender, guaranteeing the quarterback at least $14.65 million next season.

The next step is for the Patriots to send Cassel a contract which effectively means he will not be a free agent come Feb. 27. That means Cassel will not be permitted to shop himself to other teams however, he Patriots could still trade Cassel.

Cassel faxed his acceptance to the Patriots, the NFL and the NFLPA on Saturday. That means a $14.651 million salary for 2009 in guaranteed even though he has not signed a one-year contract yet. The franchise tag’s value is the average of the top five salaries for NFL players at a particular position.

With his performance on the field last year, and the uncertainty of Tom Brady’s knee healing in time for the start of the season the Patriots had to resign Cassel.

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