Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton has had quite a run during his career, but the team’s decision to bench him in favor of a rookie quarterback seems to mark the end of the era. Let’s take a look at Dalton’s career with the Bengals and what this means for the Bengals and for Dalton’s career into the future.
The Andy Dalton Era Is Over
Starting a Rookie
The Bengals are having their worst season in recent memory, starting out 0-8, and playing without A.J. Green. After the 24-10 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, the coaching staff decided to bench Dalton in favor of a rookie — Ryan Finley. Dalton has a bit of an infamous reputation as the most average quarterback in the NFL, even inspiring coaching staff to use him as the judgment line when choosing a new quarterback. He can have moments of greatness, and led the Bengals to the playoffs four years in a row. But on the other hand, they lose all four straight.
Finley might be the best move for the Bengals, who netted nearly 4,000 yards with 25 touchdowns and 11 interceptions during his last year with NC State. Not everyone is happy with the change though.
Unfortunate Timing for Dalton
In a recent interview, Dalton called the benching ‘unfortunate’ because the team decided to take him out of play just three hours before the trade deadline. “If [coach Zac Taylor] was thinking about it, at least let us try to see if I could end up somewhere else or at least see if there was an interest in possibly getting traded at that point,’ said Dalton. With the crazy last-minute deadlines, Dalton didn’t have a chance to talk to anyone at the front office about the decision, leaving him benched for the rest of the season.
Most fans and many experts believe that this was an awful way to treat a quarterback that led the Bengals to the playoffs five times during his last eight seasons, especially since he’s only got one year left on his contract.
A Quarterback for a Steal
Benching Dalton means that he doesn’t have anything to do for the rest of the season, the Bengals might be able to trade him in the off-season, especially since he’s only got one more year on his contract. That means that a new team could purchase his contract for $17.5 million. Of course, only having a year left on his contract means that the Bengals could just cut him loose since there’s no dead cap hit at this point. On a positive note, being benched means he’s less likely to get injured this winter and can start next year strong.
Looking Forward: Where Will Andy Dalton End Up?
It’s too early to tell at this point where Andy Dalton’s career might go from here. He could find himself traded during the off-season, or the Bengals could hand him his walking papers. Right now, he’s focusing on helping his replacement develop as much as possible while he’s still wearing orange and black. Dalton’s desire is to keep playing, but he wants to have the opportunity to play somewhere that he is wanted. Time will tell whether that place is with the Bengals or with another team after the end of the season. As it stands, though, the Dalton era is over and we’ll be watching to see where this quarterback goes next.
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