The Andy Dalton situation is unfortunate. It isn’t like the 33-year old asked for this. All he wanted was an opportunity to start for somebody when he became a free agent. He had no idea at the time he’d be thrown into a huge quarterback controversy. Yet that is the state of things and now he continues to get hounded by angry Chicago Bears fans who can’t understand why he is starting. Especially when Justin Fields has looked like the superior player.
Every explanation offered by head coach Matt Nagy to this point hasn’t satisfied anybody. Sure, there is a history that says sitting young QBs early in their careers has led to future success. Those are quickly countered by the huge list of rookies who played immediately and did just fine. Guys like Peyton Manning, Matt Ryan, Andry Luck, Cam Newton, Kyler Murray, Derek Carr, Josh Allen, and Justin Herbert. There has to be more to why Chicago is so persistent with this Dalton thing. Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter has a theory on that.
He explained on Good Morning Football for NFL Network.
What he says is true. Back in March, the Bears had just missed out on trading for Russell Wilson. So they needed some sort of insurance at quarterback. Dalton was available. They had a starting spot that was open. GM Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy said what they had to say in order to secure a player that might at least give the team a chance to be competitive in 2021. Then, as we all know, things shifted a month later in the draft.
Suddenly the Bears were caught in a predicament. They knew they had something in Justin Fields. Even so, they also made a promise to Dalton. What would it look like in the locker room if they went back on their word to him? So Nagy concocted this plan to start the veteran while Fields gets a chance to sit and learn.
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Now, most people will argue the NFL is a business. There is no room for class acts like this. That said, Carter still thinks it is the right decision. He insists Fields will start this season. He even has a likely date the team is shooting for.
Bears want Andy Dalton to buy them two months
That is what he’s saying. Looking at the schedule, Chicago plays the San Francisco 49ers on Halloween. Their next game would be in Pittsburgh against the Steelers followed by their bye week. So either Fields will be inserted during one of those two games or the Bears will looking to use the extra week of preparation for Baltimore coming out of the bye. If he’s right, this plan does make some sense.
Back in 1999, Andy Reid sat Donovan McNabb through his rookie year until mid-November before making him the starter. Much of this depends on how Andy Dalton plays. If he can at least produce decent numbers and win a few games, the Bears will feel comfortable waiting this out. If he looks a lot like he did in Los Angeles? Nagy may not survive long enough to make it those two months.
That makes the upcoming game against Cincinnati so fascinating.
If the Bears offense once again can’t produce enough points and Dalton struggles? It will be hard to imagine how Nagy can justify keeping the rookie benched beyond the end of September.