Getty Andy Dalton of the Chicago Bears leaves the field after defeating the New York Giants 29-3 at Soldier Field on January 02, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
Andy Dalton was expecting to be the starting quarterback for the Chicago Bears during the 2021 season, even after the team traded up to draft Justin Fields 11th overall.
The reason he had this expectation was because the team’s head coach, Matt Nagy, told him and everyone who would listen that Dalton would be The Guy, while Fields would learn from him on the bench his rookie season. Dalton got all the first-team snaps and reps throughout training camp and preseason, and Fields worked with the second stringers.
Things changed in a hurry Week 2 against the Cincinnati Bengals, when Dalton suffered a bone bruise on his knee during a second-quarter scramble. Fields filled in, showed enough flashes and play-making ability to warrant taking over the starting role, and the rest is history.
With one more game left in his 2021 campaign, Dalton spoke candidly about the highs and lows he has experienced this season, and also talked about whether or not he thinks he’ll be back in the Windy City next year.
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Dalton: A Lot of Unexpected Things This Year
“It’s been up and down,” Dalton said about his year on January 7. “There’s been a lot that’s gone on and a lot of things that have been unexpected at times but you know, it’s kind of just one of those things that you have to learn and grow from each experience that you have and that’s kind of just where I’m at.”
Dalton has played in seven games this season, starting five, and he has completed 61.7% of his passes for 1,190 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. In addition to the bruised knee, the Red Rifle also has missed time with a groin injury, and after a positive COVID-19 test.
When asked if he wondered how the season might have been different if he hadn’t gotten hurt Week 2, Dalton answered in the affirmative.
“I think about that all the time,” Dalton revealed. “But I do understand that everything happens for a reason, and trust in God’s plan over mine. I may not understand why it happened … but I know that I can trust that there’s good that’s come from it. There’s been a lot of growth for me as a person, as a player, since then. That’s some of the positive that you can take away from it. But I do think, ‘What would have happened if I didn’t get hurt Week 2?’”
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Dalton Addresses His Future in Chicago
“It’s kind of been a crazy month for me,” Dalton added. “But I feel good about where I’m at now and my body feels healthy and so I’m happy to be where I’m at now rather than where I was a few weeks ago.”
With Fields now on the COVID-19/reserve list, Dalton will get one final start in Chicago’s finale against the Minnesota Vikings Week 18. The Bears have won two straight, and they have an opportunity to end the season on a high note.
The veteran signal-caller was also asked about his future, and whether or not he thinks he’ll be with the Bears another year, and it sounds like he knows he’ll be playing somewhere else next season.
“There’s a lot that’s gonna go on after this game,” he said when asked if he had any interest in re-signing with Chicago, adding: “I’ll be looking at all the options that I have and pick the best one for me and my family.”
With a likely regime change and possibly more on the way, he’s not wrong. We’ll see how it goes.
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