Marvin Lewis has ‘no problem’ with Andy Dalton at QB

By Cory Buck | Jan 22, 2015

Jan 4, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton (14) against the Indianapolis Colts during the 2014 AFC Wild Card playoff football game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports /

Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said he’s comfortable keeping Andy Dalton as the starting QB largely because it’s so hard to find one.

Finding a quarterback in the NFL is hard. Finding one who can do the job without becoming a liability is even harder. The Cincinnati Bengals may not have a world beater in Andy Dalton, but they could do a whole lot worse. That’s why coach Marvin Lewis said he and ownership are looking at every avenue to improve this team — outside of the quarterback position.

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“We have no problem with Andy Dalton as our quarterback,” Lewis said per the team’s website. “We don’t have time to waste time with another QB. To not continue to press forward and get Andy better and to get whoever the backup quarterbacks are better. The quarterback competition. Where has it worked? It doesn’t get you wins.”

That’s a fair, realistic outlook on the position. The Bengals have made the playoffs every year they’ve had Andy Dalton at quarterback, but they remain winless in the playoffs, prompting many to clamor for the team to find a new quarterback. The team has resisted though and signed Dalton to a long-term extension last summer.

Signing a middling quarterback to a long-term deal presents a harsh conundrum for the team. Live without a top-flight quarterback in the hopes that he improves or let that guy go and jump into the same treacherous pool in which at least half the league is wading. One in which the quarterback is a hindrance to success and can single-handedly bring down the rest of the team and the team is looking for a new one to groom.

Andy Dalton has been rough at times, but he’s certainly better than the starting quarterback on enough teams for the Bengals — a well rounded football team — to look elsewhere in search of improvement.

In four seasons with the Bengals, Dalton has throw for at least 3,000 yards and 19 touchdowns every year. In all, he has 99 touchdown passes and 66 interceptions in that stretch. Those are fairly pedestrian numbers, but they’ve been good enough to get Cincy to the playoffs every season in Dalton’s career. Once he’s gotten there though, Dalton’s numbers are disastrous.

In four playoff games, Dalton has thrown one touchdown to six interceptions. The highest QBR he managed in any of those games was 25.1 and the Bengals have gone 0-4.

Plenty of teams would be happy to make the playoffs four years in a row and plenty of teams would see Andy Dalton as an upgrade at quarterback. That’s good enough for Marvin Lewis. He may not have the ideal player under center, but beggars can’t be choosers when there are more NFL teams than there are good NFL quarterbacks.

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