After the Buffalo Bills' initial offseason workouts last month, questions began surfacing about Matt Cassel's status as the default frontrunner in the quarterback competition.
Now that offseason practices have wrapped up, those questions have shifted to Cassel's chances of making the Week 1 roster.
In the OTAs and minicamp sessions open to reporters, ESPN.com's Mike Rodak gave EJ Manuel the "slight nod as the winner" while evaluating Cassel as the "clear loser" of the group.
Although Rodak believed Cassel was the favorite entering OTAs, he now questions whether the most experienced of the Buffalo quarterbacks will be on the roster by September. The team can save $4.15 million by releasing the 10-year veteran before the start of the season.
Rodak is not alone among Bills beat writers in questioning Cassel's job security. Syracuse.com's Matthew Fairburn has also raised doubts.
To be clear, though, Cassel wasn't the only passer to disappoint onlookers this spring.
All of the quarterbacks struggled so mightily in Wednesday's practice, in fact, that coach Rex Ryan was moved to keep his best defensive players on the sidelines to boost the offense's confidence in Thursday's drills.
Bills fans shouldn't get their hopes up for a summer trade that would produce an intriguing alternative such as the Redskins' Kirk Cousins.
Ryan said Thursday there was a "99.9 percent chance" that the starter for the Sept. 13 season opener against the Colts is already on the roster.
That bodes well for Cassel, who will be given plenty of training camp reps to impress the coaching staff after failing to do so over the past two months.
This is one quarterback competition that will not be decided before preseason action begins.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast discusses the Bills' QB situation, Tom Brady's appeal and the Odell Beckham Jr. drama. Find more Around The NFL content on NFL NOW.
