The Red Rifle has a new look — and it’s got social media buzzing.
Veteran quarterback Andy Dalton showed up to his first training camp with the Chicago Bears sporting a full beard, and for one reason or another, people seemed to respond. When Dalton fielded questions from the media on July 27, a still image of his interview made the rounds courtesy of Reddit user Apathi, who observed of Dalton’s look: “The Red Rifle looking like a post-apocalyptic version of himself, and it’s badass.”
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Twitter & Reddit Users Respond to Dalton’s New Look
Bears rookies and quarterbacks reported to camp on July 24, and that’s when Dalton’s beard first began to garner significant reaction on Twitter:
Andy Dalton. Andrew Dalton.
Andy Dalton should have grown a beard a long time ago because honey…..whew! 😍
When Dalton spoke to the media on July 27, his new look got people talking again:
Then, a still image from his interview with the media hit, with one Reddit user noting Dalton was a mere “eyepatch away from being the coolest looking quarterback of all-time.”
Naturally, there were also a few Ryan Fitzpatrick references:
Andy Dalton really trying to channel Ryan Fitzpatrick for his late career surge
@EvilAndyDalton I see Daltons transformation into Ryan Fitzpatrick is almost complete
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Dalton is Locked in & Focused on Upcoming Season
Whatever the response to his new beard and grizzled look, it’s unlikely the veteran QB is paying any attention.
“I don’t really get too much caught into being motivated by outside sources or outside media. I think that all of our motivation is getting better off of last year, the year prior. We’ve been 8-8 the last two years. I think all of the motivation in the world that we need is that right there,” Dalton said on July 27.
“I feel like this offense and the players that we have, I think we can be pretty versatile. We can do a lot of different things. We can run the ball in tight formations or we can spread you out and throw the ball. So I think that’s the different thing. We don’t have to have one identity — ‘this is exactly what we are.’ We want to be multiple and do different things.”
The 33-year-old quarterback also discussed what he thinks he can add to the Bears’ offense.
“You know, being able to make sure that we’re being efficient on first and second down, treating third down this year like it’s the last thing in the world,” he said.
“Being able to give ourselves another set of downs because the only way to continue to get the ball rolling to get down to the red zone is to either create X plays or keeping drives alive on third downs. So those are the things that we’ve got to stay focused on, stay locked in on. We have third-down periods in practice, we have red zone periods in practice, being able to get another set of downs and also being able to put the ball in the end zone.”
The Bears scored 23.3 points a game last year, which was 26th in the league. If Dalton can improve upon that while also helping the offense run more efficiently, Bears fans will take it. In the meantime, we can all have a little fun analyzing the Red Rifle’s new look. We’ll see if he goes full Fitzpatrick by season’s end.
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Bears’ Andy Dalton Goes Viral for ‘Post-Apocalyptic’ New Look