Quarterback Andy Dalton basically has a two-year contract worth $25 million, signed this past offseason, and it's year-to-year after that. If the Cincinnati Bengals decide he's no longer their best option, they can move on.
If Dalton doesn’t last much longer with the Bengals, we can probably point to his miserable performance in Thursday night’s 24-3 loss to the Cleveland Browns being the beginning of the end.
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First, give the Browns credit. They snapped an NFL record streak of 17 straight road losses to divisional opponents. They're now 6-3, and everyone has conveniently ignored that Josh Gordon, the NFL's most prolific receiver in 2013, comes back in two weeks. It might be time to take Cleveland seriously as a playoff contender. The Browns have a legitimate chance to win their first division title since they won the AFC Central in 1989. They were tremendous on Thursday night.
But without any doubt, Dalton was awful. Look at this line and try not to cringe: 10-of-33 for 86 yards and three interceptions. That's how you get a 2.0 passer rating. Yes, 2.0. It might be the worst performance by an NFL quarterback this season, and an inexcusable one for someone in his fourth year as a starter.
Dalton was horribly inaccurate. He threw into heavy coverage. He held the ball too long and took too many sacks. It was baffling that he wasn’t benched until Jason Campbell finally got in late in the fourth quarter. Dalton has gotten a lot of criticism for playoff failures, and he has regressed since last year. In nine games, Dalton has eight touchdowns and nine interceptions. That’s not good enough for a team that is now 5-3-1 despite some mediocre quarterback play.
The opposing quarterback, Brian Hoyer, was sharp. He was 15-of-23 for 198 yards and did exactly what he was asked to do behind a strong running game. Hoyer is scheduled to be a free agent after this season. If Dalton keeps playing like he did on Thursday night, he’ll be a free agent in a couple years, a lot sooner than he expected.
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
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