Week 17 vs Cleveland
It could be Andy Dalton's final game as a Bengal and it will be home, so expect him to play to win. Last week, he threw for 394 yards and four touchdowns to make him a late-season fantasy stud. However, that was against a bad Miami defense.
Dalton will face the Browns this week who are ranked 20th in aFPA to quarterbacks. Although it is a favorable matchup, we expect Cleveland to play to win as well so Dalton's numbers will be nothing near last week's totals.
Keep Dalton on the bench for Week 17 as we expect Cleveland to play their starters a lot in the last game of the season. Dalton will leave the field to applause at some point of this game, but don't expect it to be because of big numbers, but an appreciation of the Daltons' contribution to the franchise over the years.
Week 16 at Miami
Andy Dalton will have to shake off his four-interception performance last week. Since his return to the starting lineup, he has thrown only two touchdowns with five interceptions total. His numbers have been about where we thought they would be.
It might get a little easier this week against Miami who is 28th in aFPA to quarterbacks. Dalton's numbers should be much better, but not good enough to have a fantasy impact. The Bengals offense will continue to struggle so keep Dalton on the bench for Week 16.
Week 13 vs New York Jets
Andy Dalton will get his job back this week, but his fantasy standing is very low. He is not on the fantasy radar right now so wait and see how he plays against a bad Jets pass defense.
Week 8 at Los Angeles Rams
The question is how much longer will Andy Dalton be the Bengals quarterback? It's not really a reflection on how he is played compared to where Cincinnati is at this time and do they see Ryan Finely as their future. It won't happen this week, but don't rule out it happening sometime this season.
Dalton will face the Rams this week who are eighth in aFPA to quarterbacks. He threw three interceptions last week and the Bengals keep losing.
Expect more of the same and keep Dalton on the bench in all leagues and formats. The Red Rifle era in Cincinnati is coming to a close.
Week 7 vs Jacksonville
Andy Dalton is coming off a subpar outing against Baltimore. He threw for 235 yards but zero touchdowns and one interception. Dalton now has thrown seven touchdowns and five interceptions this season. He is playing on an offense that is struggling and the Bengals might end up having to make a change at the position.
He will be the starter against the Jaguars for Week 7. Jacksonville is 15th in aFPA to quarterbacks. Dalton has struggled for the last four weeks and it's not expected to get much better even with a neutral matchup. Keep Dalton on the bench as a QB2 this week.
Week 6 at Baltimore
It's hard to blame Andy Dalton for last week's loss. He had decent fantasy numbers throwing for 262 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. The Bengals passing game has been hurt by injuries with two receivers unavailable, but still seems to be surviving and part of the reason is the veteran QB.
Dalton will face the Ravens who are 20th in aFPA to quarterbacks. Baltimore has had some issues against the passing game so Dalton could repeat last week's performance. Historically, Dalton has struggled against the Ravens. He has thrown 17 interceptions against them, the most against any team in the NFL.
The Bengals are 0-5 but the offense has had some decent games. But even with a decent matchup for Week 6, Dalton only rates a QB2. Keep him on the bench on Sunday.
Week 5 vs Arizona
Andy Dalton struggled on Monday night as he was the victim of eight sacks. The Bengals offense never got in sync so it's back to the drawing board for Dalton and the passing game. Cincy will try to get back to where they were in Week 1 and 2 where Dalton threw for 418 and 311 yards respectively.
The Bengals will face Arizona who is 28th in aFPA to quarterbacks and that means Dalton could be poised to return to his early-season success. However, they will need to protect him.
Because of the recent struggles, Dalton rates a QB2 for Week 5, even though he gas a very favorable matchup.
Week 4 at Pittsburgh
After a strong start to the season, Andy Dalton had his worst game of the year which had him complete only 56% of his passes for 250 yards and one touchdown. He threw his first multi-interception game, but did surprise everyone with a rushing touchdown.
Dalton will face division rival Pittsburgh. Historically, Dalton's numbers against the Steelers have been below-average across the board, but he did have a decent game last season where he threw two touchdowns without a pick. (He didn't play in the second meeting). The Steelers are ranked 11th in aFPA to quarterbacks so slight advantage to the defense.
Dalton ranks a QB2 for Week 4. Keep him on the bench on the road against a team he has not played well against during his career.
Week 2 vs San Francisco
One of the biggest surprises of Week 1 was Andy Dalton's performance at Seattle. He threw for 418 yards and two touchdowns and although he didn't throw an interception, he did lose two fumbles. Dalton has been capable in the past, but with A.J. Green, the Bengals were expected to struggle offensively. It didn't happen last week.
Next up is San Francisco who is 20th in aFPA to quarterbacks. Dalton will be at home this week and one thing the Bengals need to do is protect him better. He was sacked five times last week.
Dalton wasn't even on the fantasy radar in the preseason, but now he will be picked up in most leagues where he was a free agent. We want to see more from him before we start putting him in the starting lineup but he rates a QB2 for Week 2 and might end up being a viable backup quarterback on your roster.
Fantasy Upside
Consistently good is how to describe Andy Dalton’s nine-year career. He has played seven seasons where he hasn’t missed a game and has never thrown for less than 3,300 yards during those seasons. Dalton did eclipse the 4,000-yard mark on two occasions and that is possible again if his receivers stay healthy. You can count on at least 20 touchdown passes and less than 10 interceptions if his 2019 numbers mirror recent seasons. And new coach Zac Taylor is all-in with Dalton as the starting quarterback for the next two seasons which is when his contract expires. Cincy chose a quarterback in the fourth round of the 2019 draft, but Ryan Finley is no threat to Dalton’s job.
Fantasy Downside
Dalton has only missed eight games during his career but five of those were at the end of last season. His top receivers – AJ Green and Tyler Eifert – have both had injury issues over the past three years and that has hurt the Bengals passing game. The offensive line also struggled last season again which doesn’t help an immobile Dalton.
2019 Bottom Line
The problem with Dalton from a fantasy standpoint is he has been good, not great with the exception of two seasons. His numbers are reliable, but he isn’t going to be among the league leaders in 2019. Still, he isn’t a bad option to take later in the draft as your second quarterback because of that consistency. If he plays a full season and his receivers are healthy, 3,700 yards and 25 touchdowns is realistic as his ceiling for this season.
