The Cincinnati Bengals are having a bad year, to put it lightly. After going winless in eight games this season, the team is now reportedly looking to shake things up at the quarterback position for the first time in nine years.
Multiple outlets are reporting that Andy Dalton will be benched in favor of rookie Ryan Finley when the team resumes play on Nov. 10 at Paul Brown Stadium vs. the Baltimore Ravens. The NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero was first to report the move, citing team sources.
The reports say the Bengals want to see how Finley fits into the team’s plans for the future. A North Carolina State product, the Bengals got Finley in the fourth round of the 2019 draft. He played well this pre-season; NFL.com says in three games he had a QB rating of 99.3, completing 47 of 64 passes for 414 yards and three touchdowns.
Dalton has been with the Bengals for nine seasons. After last season, the Bengals finally let longtime head coach Marvin Lewis go after he failed to win a playoff game in his 16 years in charge of the team, replacing him with Zac Taylor.
Dalton has, of course, also never led his team to a playoff win.
Today is also the trade deadline and while most think the Bengals won’t make any major moves, some still think they should part with star (and oft-injured) wide receiver AJ Green. Sports Illustrated thinks the team should look to move Dalton. The deadline is 4 p.m. ET today.
And today is also Dalton’s 32nd birthday. 🙁
UPDATE: Geoff Hobson confirmed that Dalton would be benched in favor of Finley at bengals.com. Hobson says it was Taylor’s decision to put Finley in as starter.
This article appears in Oct 16-29, 2019.