EDEN PRAIRIE — Tom Brady and Matt Cassel have been close friends for going on 10 years now.

When the Patriots visit Minnesota on Sunday, the two quarterbacks will face each other on the field for the first time.

Brady and Cassel developed that friendship during Cassel’s first four seasons in the league with the Patriots. Cassel stepped in for the injured Brady in 2008 and helped the Patriots finish the season 10-5.

He left after that season for a starting job in Kansas City before landing in Minnesota. Even though Cassel has been gone for six years, he says the two have remained close.

Cassel says he credits Brady for helping him grow from a seventh-round draft pick into an NFL starter.