After wide receiver Andre Rison’s brief and star-crossed three seasons with the Chiefs, I shook my head and thought one day Spiderman would look back and regret how he squandered Hall of Fame-caliber talent.

I was wrong.

Rison is still delusional about his career. Just check out some comments he made in an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution while appearing at a football camp.

Asked about his legacy, Rison said:

“Best receiver to ever play the game. I can’t show my highlights because I don’t own NFL Films, but all my coaches in college, in high school, in junior college, they all told me I could be the best. But they must’ve lied because that title was already given to Jerry Rice. Just because you have stats doesn’t mean you’re the best. Can’t nobody tell me that Andre Reed isn’t better than Jerry Rice. I’m seeing cornerbacks on the 75th anniversary team that I used to demolish. But I’m coming out with my own hall of fame.”

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You'll be able to read much more about Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel's signing of a multi-year contract in tomorrow's edition of The Star, including what it means for the team, Cassel and even first-year general manager Scott Pioli.

But for now, here is what the 27-year-old Cassel had to say about his new contract:

"I am honored and humbled by the faith that the Chiefs organization has displayed in me," Cassel said. "I would like to personally thank Clark Hunt, Scott Pioli and Coach (Todd) Haley for the chance to play in Kansas City on a long-term basis.

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Matt Cassel might not be a big name in quarterback circles, but his signing of a six-year, $63 million contract Tuesday has huge ramifications for the Kansas City Chiefs.

1. It gives the Chiefs long-term security at QB: They surrendered a second-round pick to the New England Patriots for Cassel (and veteran linebacker Mike Vrabel). It was the 34th pick in the 2009 draft, so it would have been a horrible strategy to give up that pick and then lose Cassel to free agency next season if he has a good year. Plus, it also doesn't make sense to have him on the salary-cap books for $14.65 million this season when there was a chance to get a long-term deal. Right or wrong, Cassel is the player new Chiefs GM Scott Pioli believes is a franchise quarterback. Pioli had to get him signed to a long-term deal.

2. Cassel had to be signed to "the right number." Since arriving from New England himself, Pioli is trying to establish organization policy in Kansas City. In New England, Bill Belichick and Pioli established a system in which the players -- even the best players -- didn't get top dollar. They were paid fairly, but the Patriots wanted to make sure that they can afford to keep quality players on the team. They needed cap room to do that.

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Remember when, in recent years, Chiefs fans would go into the season wondering who Kansas City's quarterback would be? The last two years packed the most confusion, but even before that, there was a sense that, well, this is as good as it gets. The Chiefs had Steve DeBerg or Elvis Grbac or Trent Green, and that was fine, but it was tough to envision those players becoming Pro Bowlers.

Now, heck, anything is possible. The Chiefs acquired Matt Cassel in an offseason trade, and, while he could become a colossal disappointment, he also could be one of the best passers in Chiefs history. No pressure.

But if nothing else, Cassel has given the Chiefs hope that a once-rocky position is now set -- if the 27-year-old reaches even the outskirts of his expectations and, more of a question entering this year, stays healthy behind a patchwork offensive line. We'll save the pass protecting discussion for another day, but it's worth mentioning that Cassel's talent will be tough to gauge accurately if he's constantly under pressure. But you knew that.

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The Chiefs announced Monday that the team's first head athletic trainer, Wayne Rudy, died over the weekend in Texas.

Rudy spent 24 years in that position after joining the Chiefs/Dallas Texas organization in 1960.

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