The Bengals have the top pick in the draft, and whatever you hear over the next couple of months -- trade rumors or whatnot -- they'll stay put and draft a quarterback, almost certainly Joe Burrow. And while it's not a given that quarterback will be a Week 1 starter, it's probable. And Andy Dalton will be elsewhere.
The Bengals apparently aren't going to make Dalton stay around to groom a young quarterback; they're letting him pursue a trade. And there should be a market, possibly even with a good team that's looking for a capable starter with some years left. Dalton is just 32 years old, a spring chicken compared to the likes of Tom Brady and Philip Rivers.
Dalton in New England's offense, in the unlikely event Brady leaves town, might be interesting. It's long been adept at scheming receivers open and giving quarterbacks favorable throws, backing them with a strong running game. And we've discussed how quarterback-friendly Bruce Arians' offense is in Tampa Bay, and the wealth of weapons he'd have there.
But it should also be considered that Dalton isn't playing at the level he was earlier in his career. He comes off his career-worst season in several key areas: touchdowns, yards per attempt and passer rating. He also completed under 60 percent of his passes -- that's his lowest total since his rookie season. Not every quarterback is effective until his late 30s; maybe Dalton's decline has come a little younger than some other veteran passers.
In the table, sorted by passer rating, categories where Dalton set career lows last year are in bold.
| ANDY DALTON CAREER PASSING NUMBERS | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | G | Att | Comp | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rate |
| 2015 | 13 | 386 | 255 | 66.1 | 3,250 | 8.4 | 25 | 7 | 106.2 |
| 2016 | 16 | 563 | 364 | 64.7 | 4,206 | 7.5 | 18 | 8 | 91.8 |
| 2018 | 11 | 365 | 226 | 61.9 | 2,566 | 7.0 | 21 | 11 | 89.6 |
| 2013 | 16 | 586 | 363 | 61.9 | 4,293 | 7.3 | 33 | 20 | 88.8 |
| 2012 | 16 | 528 | 329 | 62.3 | 3,669 | 6.9 | 27 | 16 | 87.4 |
| 2017 | 16 | 496 | 297 | 59.9 | 3,320 | 6.7 | 25 | 12 | 86.6 |
| 2014 | 16 | 481 | 309 | 64.2 | 3,398 | 7.1 | 19 | 17 | 83.5 |
| 2011 | 16 | 516 | 300 | 58.1 | 3,398 | 6.6 | 20 | 13 | 80.4 |
| 2019 | 13 | 528 | 314 | 59.5 | 3,494 | 6.6 | 16 | 14 | 78.3 |
I've seen Dalton's name floated as a possibility for Chicago, and that makes sense. Mitchell Trubisky was a big disappointment a year ago, and Dalton wouldn't have to do much to be an upgrade there.
But I don't think he should be viewed as a savior, or the next Carson Palmer or Kurt Warner to Arizona story. Most likely he'll be a bridge quarterback somewhere, giving a team a mediocre level of play for a year or two until they too look to the draft for next franchise guy, just like the Bengals are doing.
--Andy Richardson