The Cincinnati Bengals have to be all in on Ryan Finley in December
By Steve Rivera
It isn’t complicated to understand why the Cincinnati Bengals will likely continue with Ryan Finley at quarterback. With the top pick hanging in the balance of the 2020 NFL Draft, a change is unlikely.
It didn’t take long for the Andy Dalton calls to begin on social media. As the Cincinnati Bengals watched another one slip away on Sunday, fans were left to wonder if Dalton would have been a deciding difference. The fact is, he would have been. Maybe with Dalton in the game, Cincinnati gets their first win of the 2019 NFL season.
Or, maybe not. Memories seem short for Dalton fans as he was the quarterback that helped them to an 0-8 start. While granting the Week 12 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers was remarkably winnable, there is no guarantee Dalton at quarterback is a game-changer.
Frankly, that’s no longer the point. When Zac Taylor made the switch to rookie Ryan Finley, the Bengals we’re basically saying they were moving on from Dalton. At that point, Taylor and the organization were “all in” on Finley, come hell or high water. While he has yet to provide any tangible spark to indicate he’s going to turn it around, the idea of going back to Dalton just isn’t viable.
Fans shouldn’t misunderstand. I doubt the Bengals are saying that Finley is their guy in 2020. What they did say is that Dalton isn’t the guy moving forward. Odds are, if Finley continues to flame out as he has, Taylor either keeps limping along with Finley or makes the move to Jake Dolegala.
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As for the message the organization is sending, well, it appears it was already sent when Dalton went to the bench. Winning games may not be a top priority in the bigger picture that is 2019. If it were, then the team is involved at the trade deadline, A.J. Green is signed and locked up for the foreseeable future, and he’s catching footballs from Dalton on Sunday afternoons.
Instead, you have a rookie head coach way in over his head, a rookie quarterback who can’t hold on to the football, and the top pick in the 2020 NFL Draft hanging in the balance.
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The message is very loud and very clear. By being all-in on Ryan Finley, they are also “all-in” on the No.1 overall pick in the draft, which is why Finley will finish the season at quarterback.