AP

With Chad Henne breaking the seal on the backup-quarterbacks-for-teams-that-need-starters market today, it’s fair game for the rest of them.

Thus, the Vikings have held onto Matt Cassel, as Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports Cassel has agreed to a new two-year deal.

The process was doubtless helped along by new coach Mike Zimmer’s realization that he needed some degree of stability, and as bizarre as it might seem, Cassel presented just that.

As with Henne in Jacksonville, the key will be what the Vikings do to fill the spot above Cassel on the depth chart.

If Zimmer is intent on hanging onto the Christian Ponder experiment (or wants to start Cassel), the move isn’t a very good one in a vacuum.

But in the presence of the right starter, Cassel has proven a solid piece to have around. Like Henne with the Jaguars, the Vikings played their best football last year with Cassel under center.

Keeping him from getting there too often will determine how much progress they’re going to make.