It’s the worst possible start for the Cincinnati Bengals today, as Andy Dalton exited the game in the first quarter with an injury. Dalton attempted a shovel pass that was intercepted on the Bengals opening drive, and appeared to injure his thumb making a tackle.
The injury is on his right thumb, which is his throwing hand. With Dalton being ruled out for the game very quickly by Bengals staff, it’s possible to draw one of two possible conclusions. Either the injury is serious and Dalton will miss extended time, or the Bengals are playing it safe with Dalton and not taking any chances.
After coming back out onto the field, Dalton was already wearing a hard cast on his right hand.
He has been ruled out for the rest of today’s contest, and was replaced at QB by AJ McCarron. The former Alabama quarterback has thrown just four regular season passes in his NFL career heading into today.
According to Twitter Doctor David Chao, it’s unlikely we see Dalton’s return soon.
It could be a potentially devastating blow for the Bengals, who are projected to be one of the top seeds in the AFC Playoffs. With a win today, Cincinnati would clinch an AFC North division title.
It’s also disappointing for Dalton, who has been having a sensational season. Dalton was actually the number one QB in fantasy football through the first half of the season, and has seven combined TD passes in the last three weeks.