On Friday we tabbed the Bucs, Rams, Titans, Cardinals and Cowboys as teams that might surprise us by taking a quarterback high up in next week's draft. Time to add another squad to that list.
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ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported Saturday morning that the Cincinnati Bengals loom as a "surprise" candidate to select a signal-caller. Their target? Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater.
Despite needs at the cornerback and defensive line positions, the Bengals potentially see what we do: That Andy Dalton is a tough sell as your long-term answer under center.
Entering the final year of his contract, Dalton told SiriusXM NFL Radio in March that "there have been talks" with the team about a new contract. Coach Marvin Lewis told reporters at the NFL Annual Meeting that he was "hopeful" the Bengals would work out an extension. However, owner Mike Brown must decide if he wants to hand more than $15 million annually to a passer who inspired NFL Media's Chris Wesseling to dream up the "After Dalton" scale -- meaning, if you rank below Dalton, you are a problem.
His numbers look promising on paper, but Dalton's pocket presence and field vision are inconsistent -- sometimes maddening. Three of his most dubious performances have come in the team's trio of playoff losses dating back to Dalton's rookie campaign.
The Bengals thinking about other options at the position tells us that Cincinnati is serious about becoming more than Saturday morning wild-card fodder for more complete teams.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" breaks down draft news and rumors and plays the popular prediction game, "Go Get My Lunch!"
