The idea Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton could end up on the New England Patriots in place of Tom Brady is one of the more popular offseason theories so far.
Peter King of NBC Sports just made this argument while playing connect-the-dots between the Patriots and Bengals should the former lose Brady:
I’ll preface this by saying none of this logic matters if Bill Belichick has already decided he wants to start a new era that doesn’t include a 43-year-old quarterback who makes a lot of money. Belichick might want to begin anew with a quarterback he feels is good and who costs significantly less—someone like 32-year-old Andy Dalton; the Patriots would probably have to pay a third or fourth-round pick for Dalton, who has a year left on his contract and no future in Cincinnati. (The Patriots have two thirds and two fourths, including a likely third-round compensatory pick.) If Belichick makes up his mind that it’s time to move on from Brady, then my argument is moot. Dalton, by the way, would be my pick to start in New England next year if Brady goes. Belichick would love Dalton. He’s a quiet, intense, lunchpail Texan who makes no excuses. And Dalton would embrace the Patriot ethos.
King has made this Dalton-to-Patriots idea widespread in the past. So has Bart Scott.
All of it hinges on the Patriots and Brady, really. Mike Brown loves to brag about his trading relationship with Bill Belichick. The Bengals want to do right by Dalton as he leaves — and pairing him with Belichick would certainly fit the idea.
We’re still a long way out from finding out if this hypothetical gains traction. But it’s yet another reminder that the happenings in Foxboro — as well as everywhere else — are of critical import to the Bengals this offseason thanks to the Dalton dynamic.
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