Andy Dalton was hoping the Cincinnati Bengals would trade him once they decided to bench him and turn things over to Ryan Finley, but the veteran quarterback will now have to wait until the offseason to potentially find a new home. Should the Bengals decide to go in that direction, there will reportedly be plenty of interest.
Dalton still wants the Bengals to trade him, and Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports that there will be a “viable trade market” for him. One team to keep an eye on is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as Jameis Winston has been struggling again this season and Bucs coach Bruce Arians was high on Dalton during the NFL Draft process back in 2011. Winston is also in the final season of his rookie contract.
The Bengals are 0-8 and may be on the verge of a total rebuild. Dalton is under contract with the team through 2020, but moving on from him makes sense. Cincinnati is in contention to have the No. 1 overall pick in next year’s draft, so they could be in position to draft their quarterback of the future.
While we saw some good come from Dalton’s benching, you can’t blame him for being unhappy with the situation in Cincy. La Canfora speculates that the Bengals will be able to get a second-round pick in a trade for Dalton, and you have to wonder why they didn’t make more of an effort to move him before the deadline.
