The Advice That Helped Drive Matt Cassel to the NFL

Paul McDonald shares his words of encouragement for Matt Cassel.

It was 2005 USC Pro Day. Matt Cassel was thinking about competing and giving the NFL a shot. Some might have thought Cassel would have never panned out in the NFL, as he served as a backup QB for most of his college career. Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart had secured the starting spots at the time.

Former USC QB Paul McDonald remembers a conversation he had with Cassel back in 2005, encouraging him to participate in Pro Day. "I go you should give it a shot you can never go back" (McDonald).

Well, turns out that was pretty good advice. 

Cassel had an impressive performance at USC's pro day and ended up getting drafted in the 2005 NFL draft (7th round). Cassel finally got his break to start as QB when Tom Brady went down with a knee injury in 2008.

Since then Cassel has gone on to have an impressive career, playing 13 years in the NFL. Cassel has found himself onto many NFL rosters including the New England Patriots, Kansas City Chiefs, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, Tennessee Titans, and Detroit Lions.