3) AJ McCarron hasn’t missed a beat
Never would I have thought the Bengals’ quarterbacks would be a strength heading into the playoffs, yet here we are. Before Dalton’s injury, he was having a career year and looked like he was finally about to silence his critics. Since he’s gone down, we’ve only had four games to see how AJ McCarron would fill in, but so far he hasn’t looked out of place. He’s guided his team to two wins to keep them atop the division, hung with the Broncos and nearly rallied the offense back against the Steelers.
A big part of McCarron’s success is the talented receivers he’s had around him. Tyler Eifert is one of the elite tight ends in the league, leading the position with 13 touchdowns this season (that’s a pace of one touchdown per game). In the red zone, it’s hard to find a more dependable target.
McCarron’s first name twin, A.J. Green, has also had a successful season. With 10 touchdowns, it’s the third season in his career where he’s hit double digits in that category. He also has a good connection with McCarron, as one of his first plays in the NFL was a 66-yard touchdown throw to Green, who’s a deep threat who can run killer routes. These are the two biggest names, but when opposing defenses are locked in on them, McCarron can still look towards Mohamed Sanu and Marvin Jones.
Even though the playoffs are a different beast compared to the regular season, AJ McCarron is no stranger to success. He spent four seasons with the Alabama Crimson Tide, and has quarterbacked his team to a national championship in two of them. No matter how you spin it, that’s a winning pedigree. He knows what it takes to win big games which could be the Bengals’ missing intangible for playoff success.
Next: AFC quarterbacks