It wasn’t long before the Chicago Bears chose Andy Dalton as their starting quarterback.
A week after signing with the former Dallas Cowboys defender on a $ 10 million contract for a year, the team tweeted a concise announcement on Wednesday that Dalton had been named QB1:
The announcement quickly dismisses any idea of a Chicago quarterback competition between Dalton and Nick Foles. Dalton had actually revealed that the Bears told him that he would be the starter if he signed, which may explain why he chose the team.
The bear training camp is scheduled to start in approximately four months.
Dalton arrived in Chicago after a yearlong stay in Dallas, where he took on his initial duties after Dak Prescott’s injuries at the end of the season. Dalton acted as a useful but inadequate substitution, with the Cowboys going 4-5, while he posted 2,059 yards with 14 touchdowns, eight interceptions and a 64.5% completion rate in nine matches.
Prior to that, he was the longtime holder of Cincinnati Bengals, leading the team to two AFC North titles and five playoff spots under coach Marvin Lewis, but without winning a single playoff game.
If Andy Dalton is the answer, what is the question?
Few teams would attack a quarterback with Dalton’s story, but the Bears are obviously not like other teams.
The team reportedly put a lot of pressure on Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson amid rumors that the Pro Bowler was interested in an exchange, but was rejected by the Seahawks. With few other options – the Houston Texans QB Deshaun Watson’s price was astronomical, and this situation has obviously deteriorated – the Bears turned to Dalton instead of going with Foles, their internal option.
Former general choice number 2 Mitch Trubisky is officially out of Chicago after signing with the Buffalo Bills, leaving Foles as the only other quarterback remaining on the Bears’ list. The Bears paid a significant price for Bellows in the last off-season – swapping a choice in the fourth round to take on his hefty contract (while Dalton signed a $ 3 million deal with Dallas) – but his performance last year was difficult enough for Bears fans to want Trubisky back under center at the end of the season.
Dalton’s price was not huge, $ 10 million, but the cost was significant. Shortly after agreeing to a deal with Dalton, the Bears launched the All-Pro cornerback Kyle Fuller to make room, bringing Desmond Trufant to replace him.
So now the Bears will start Dalton, because their second overall choice never worked and their potential reserve plan was even worse, at the expense of one of their best defensive players, all to try to fight again with a squad that was 8 -8 last year.
This is the team’s short-term plan. The long-term plan may be even more inscrutable considering that they hold only the 20th overall choice in this year’s NFL draft, which will make it difficult to get one of this year’s great potential players. We will see if their path is clearer with Dalton.
More from Yahoo Sports: