Cowboys get QB insurance, land Dalton
Dallas-Pittsburgh exhibition opener Aug. 6 is still in play
Andy Dalton is coming home to Texas as Dak Prescott’s backup with the Dallas Cowboys.
Dalton and the Cowboys agreed Saturday to a one-year deal that guarantees the former Cincinnati starter $3 million and could be worth up to $7 million. The agreement was first reported by ESPN.
The Cowboys reached a deal with Dalton two days after he was released by the Bengals. That moved cleared the way for No. 1 overall draft pick Joe Burrow to be Cincinnati’s starter.
Dalton, born and raised in the Houston area, led TCU to an undefeated season that included a Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin during the 2010 season before the Bengals drafted him in the second round.
The Cowboys have relied on the untested Cooper Rush behind Prescott the past two seasons. The 32-year-old Dalton marks their biggest investment in a veteran backup since Prescott replaced the injured Tony Romo as a rookie in 2016 and ended up taking his job for good.
Dalton started 133 games for the Bengals and led the franchise’s best stretch of playoff appearances — five straight from 2011-15 — but couldn’t get that elusive win.
Cincinnati lost in the first round each time, setting an NFL record. Dalton had a broken thumb and was sidelined for the last of those playoff appearances, which ended in a last-minute meltdown and an 18-16 loss to Pittsburgh during the 2015 season.
Dalton’s 70-61-2 record as a starter is second best by a Bengals quarterback with at least 10 starts, trailing Virgil Carter. Dalton holds the club records for touchdown passes (204) and completions (2,757).
Coach Zac Taylor signaled the end of Dalton’s career in Cincinnati by benching him for three games midway through last year’s 2-14 season, a move that shocked Dalton and his longtime teammates. The Cowboys have placed the franchise tag on Prescott, who hasn’t signed the one-year tender worth about $31 million. The sides have until July 15 to get a long-term contract done.
MORE COWBOYS: If you have any questions about the start of the NFL season, league spokesperson Brian McCarthy said Saturday morning the goal is to start everything on time.
Yes, even the Aug. 6 Hall of Fame preseason game between the Cowboys and the Steelers.
The NFL will release the 2020 schedule next week. “It is only responsible for the league to prepare for all alternatives and we will be ready if we have to make adjustments,” McCarthy told The Dallas Morning News in an email on Saturday. “Our decisions will continue to be guided by the latest advice from medical and public health officials, as well as current and future government regulations.”
NFL teams are not allowed at their team facilities due to the coronavirus pandemic. Some states, including Texas, have slowly opened up some retail
businesses and restaurants. But NFL officials will only allow teams to report to their facilities when the entire country is open.
“Our primary focus remains protecting the health of our fans, players, club and league personnel and communities,” McCarthy said. “We have made adjustments this offseason with changes to free agency, the (NFL) draft and the virtual offseason program, which have all been conducted safely and efficiently.”
The Cowboys have had training camps in Oxnard, Calif., but it has not been determined if they will have it again this summer.
Mike McCarthy said he’s got two training camp plans, one for Oxnard and another for Frisco, at the team’s headquarters. This offseason, the Cowboys, along with other NFL teams, have been unable to have onfield work with players due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Teams are conducting virtual meetings with players, instead.
The NFL, however, still has a belief the season will start on time unless told otherwise.
NBA officials explored the possibility of opening team facilities in states that eased stay-at-home practices. Cowboysw owner Jerry Jones was supporting the NFL plans on keeping things closed until further notice.
“I know this, there’s a fundamental thing that we have in the NFL,” Jones said last week when asked about the NBA’s potential plans. “That is that we’re not going to do anything in areas where some teams are allowed to gather, practice and prepare, and others teams can’t . ... They might be under an acute set of facts, there are just more people sick or there are more people with the virus. And there are some places in this country that do have less of everything we all see or are being considered. So, until that evens up or until that gets competitive, then I think you’re going to see some restrictions.”
BEARS: Chicago declined its fifthyear option for quarterback Mitchell Trubisky for the 2021 season, a person familiar with the situation said Saturday.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move has not been announced.
The NFL Network first reported the decision.
The move is hardly a surprise considering the way Trubisky struggled in his third season since the Bears drafted him with the No. 2 overall pick. His yards (3,138), completion rate (63.2%), touchdowns (17) and rating (83) all dropped from the previous year.
The Bears acquired 2018 Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles from Jacksonville in March and plan to hold an open competition for the starting job.
Last season, the Bears went 8-8 and missed the playoffs for the eighth time in nine years a season after winning the NFC North at 12-4. Though their defense continued to excel, their offense ranked among the worst in the NFL.
CHIEFS: Kansas City agreed to a contract with defensive end Taco Charlton, adding a former firstround pick who flamed out in Dallas and Miami but whose athleticism is a perfect match for coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s defense.
Charlton, 25, was the 28th overall selection in the 2017 draft. He made seven starts for the Cowboys before sustaining a shoulder injury, and he was waived just two weeks into last season. The Dolphins signed Charlton and he made five starts and appeared in 10 games, but he was a healthy scratch the last four games of the regular season.
The Dolphins waived him Thursday. Charlton will compete for playing time within a rotation that includes starting defensive ends Frank Clark and Alex Okafor and fifth-round draft pick Mike Danna.