Once a week, I’ll take a shot at handicapping the Matt Cassel Sweepstakes, trying to figure out which team has the best shot at landing the New England quarterback in a trade. This week, the Vikings are moving down, the Chiefs are moving up and the Bucs and Lions remain intriguing possibilities.

Kansas City: Tyler Thigpen was the least of the Chiefs worries last season. (That defense was miserable.) For what they’re paying him and what they’re getting out of him, he’s a great deal. However, Kansas City has some room under the cap, the Belichick-Scott Pioli relationship will certainly help keep the lines of communication open and the Chiefs have plenty of talented offensive weapons. However, similar to a possible deal with Detroit, New England wants no part of the third overall selection the Chiefs hold — and the contractual obligations that would go along with it. But if you can either take that No. 3 pick and turn it into a bunch of mid-round selections, or take a second- and third-round pick from Kansas City in return, then you’ve got something. (For what it’s worth, I got an e-mail from a reader last week who insisted the Patriots and the Chiefs have a deal in place to send Cassel to Kansas City for the No. 3 pick and Tony Gonzalez.) Odds: 12-1, holding steady.

Detroit: When it comes to coordinating a trade for Cassel, there are plenty of reasons to like the Lions and plenty of reasons not to like them. On the plus side, Matthew Stafford isn’t the dead-solid lock to be taken at No. 1 like he was before the combine, and new head coach Jim Schwartz is a friend of Bill Belichick. In addition, Detroit’s draft position is enviable — the Patriots would want no part of the overall No. 1 pick. But if they could turn that selection into three or four later-round selections, then you’ve got something. All these factors make Detroit a positive landing spot for Cassel. On the negative side, there’s the fact Daunte Culpepper just re-did his deal to return to Motown and there are other cheaper possible free agents out there. (Derek Anderson, Byron Leftwich): Odds: 15-1, holding steady.

Tampa Bay: An intriguing spot. Tampa has nice cap space, a new coaching staff that would likely embrace the idea of someone like Cassel running the show and some competent pass-catching weapons in Antonio Bryant, Michael Clayton, Warrick Dunn and Ike Hilliard, all of whom caught at least 38 passes last year. Their current QB situation is in a state of flux — they just cut loose Jeff Garcia — and their draft position (middle of each round, at No. 19, 50 and 81 overall) would certainly be a match with the Patriots if they were looking for a trade partner with multiple selections in the Top 100. Odds: 17-1, and worth watching.

Washington: The wild card. With a wildly unstable owner in Dan Snyder, no one is quite sure how it would all play out. Jason Campbell has one more year left on his current contract, and there’s a history here of the Redskins tossing around draft picks with wild abandon — with Snyder’s prodding a few years ago, they almost gave up a first- and second-round pick for Chad Johnson. So as long as Snyder is in charge, anything can happen — Belichick could offer a bag of magic beans for multiple picks, and he might say yes. (One random note about Snyder. When he got off the elevator at Gillette Stadium a few years ago, I was face to face with him. Two things struck me: He was much shorter than I expected, and he was wearing sunglasses. Indoors. Two kinds of people wear sunglasses indoors. Blind people and … well, you can probably fill in the rest.) Odds: 20-1, but could go either way at a moments notice.

Minnesota: Cassel to the Vikings got a lot harder when the news came out that Minnesota is close to a deal for Sage Rosenfels. If the Vikings do indeed make the trade, that would give them Rosenfels, Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte (if Minnesota picks up his $250,000 bonus next month) at quarterback. When you consider Brad Childress’ face darkened when he was asked about Cassel at the combine, it would appear to be enough. Odds: 25-1 and getting worse.

The rest of the field: Coaches and execs from two other oft-mentioned landing spots — San Francisco and Chicago — made clear statements last week at the combine they are committed to the veteran quarterbacks they have. Odds: 30-1.