AJ McCarron may be only backup QB to make Bengals' roster

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By Jason Marcum  @marcum89 on Jun 15, 2015, 4:00pm

Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

AJ McCaron is ahead of Josh Johnson and Terrelle Pryor enough that the latter two are becoming more expendable.

The Cincinnati Bengals traditionally keep only two quarterbacks, and that may not be changing in 2015.

Though veterans Terrelle Pryor and Josh Johnson were added this offseason, it's been AJ McCarron who has been the talk of OTAs. He's not only put himself in position to open 2015 as Dalton's backup, but he's done well enough that the Bengals may feel confident enough in him to release the two vets during final roster cuts.

As Geoff Hobson writes, McCarron is clearly ahead of Johnson and Pryor for the No. 2 spot, which could make it easy for Cincinnati to once again stick to two QBs on the 53-man roster.

Yes, they like McCarron and he’s had a good enough spring that he’s most likely ahead of Terrelle Pryor and Josh Johnson and if they had to make a call now they’d probably keep only two quarterbacks and they would be Dalton and McCarron.

As good as McCarron has been, don't expect to see him taking Dalton's job anytime soon, as Hobson writes:

But McCarron isn’t going to play ahead of Dalton. At least in the foreseeable future. Dalton would have to have a month of Clevelands for that to even be discussed.

And, don’t get me wrong. I like McCarron. He’s poised, football is important to him, he’s got a good work ethic, he’s obviously a winner and he’s got an edge to him. But never mind he’s never thrown an NFL regular-season pass. He’s never thrown a pre-season pass. Let him develop.

McCarron simply isn’t in position to push Dalton this season and that’s no reflection on him, that’s just the way it is.

As good as McCarron has looked in the padless practices, let's see how he looks once training camp opens and the pads come on. If he continues to perform well during camp and in preseason games, then there really is no point in keeping Pryor or Johnson.

While McCarron didn't throw a pass last year, he was cleared to practice beginning Nov. 18 after a stint on PUP while rehabbing his shoulder injury. He was then activated to the Bengals' 53-man roster on Dec. 9, which was a bit of a surprise. The Bengals could have placed him on season-ending I.R. and used that roster spot for a receiver or linebacker.

Instead, they opted to keep McCarron, which in turn allowed him to keep practicing and developing, despite being a gameday inactive the rest of the season. That little experience appears to have helped springboard him into a great offseason so far, which now has him looking to lock down the No. 2 quarterback spot.

http://www.cincyjungle.com/2015/6/1...-may-be-only-backup-qb-to-make-bengals-roster

 

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Cincinnati Bengals Must Trust AJ McCarron
By Chad Troyan on June 14, 2015


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The Cincinnati Bengals have an elephant in the room and there is no need for introductions. In four playoff games under the command of Andy Dalton, the Bengals have failed to secure a win. The absence of playoff success has fans frustrated.

But what if the Bengals already have their answer to their playoff woes? Would the Bengals pull the trigger?

With this question comes good news and bad news.

The good news is that the Bengals already have their answer to their playoff woes in 2014 selection AJ McCarron. The bad news is that while they have been impressed with McCarron, they are not ready to just hand over the reins to him.

McCarron, who was a fifth-round selection in the 2014 draft, was physically unable to perform to start the season which led him to limited reps with team. Despite losing his rookie season to injury, McCarron has shown enough improvement over the offseason to be slated to be Dalton’s backup.

While Dalton’s contract solidifies him as the team’s starter the next two seasons, McCarron would be the better way to go.

Dalton has proven to crumble under the lights in big-stage games. In four playoff games he has accumulated the following stat line:

4 games / 0-4 record / 55.69 Comp. percentage / 873 yards / 1 TD / 5 INTs

McCarron, however, has proven to be effective in games big-stage games in his playing career.

2 games / 2-0 record / 69.35 Comp. percentage / 498 yards / 4 TDs / 0 INTs

While McCarron played in two fewer games, he competed in the biggest game in college football twice and won both contests, proving that he can handle the pressure that comes with big-stage games.

Finally the biggest concern with Dalton is regarding his lack of success given the plethora of weapons he has around him. McCarron, on the other hand, has played with talent equivalent to the weapons he would have if he took charge of the Bengals’ offense. In the end, if the Bengals want to see any playoff success they need to have a “changing of the guards” and give McCarron the keys to the offense.

http://www.rantsports.com/nfl/2015/06/14/cincinnati-bengals-must-trust-aj-mccarron/