Chicago Bears had to rush in a replacement for their veteran quarterback, Andy Dalton, after he left Sunday’s game against the  Cincinnati Bengals due to a non-contact injury. Dalton, however, returned to the playing field after suffering what appeared to an injury in his left knee during a 14-yard run in the second quarter. He had completed 7-of-8 passes for 41 yards and one touchdown. Before joining the Bears, the 33-year-old Dalton represented Cincinnati Bengals and Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed “The Red Rifle,” Dalton became Texas Christian University’s leader in quarterback wins and won the 2011 Rose Bowl.

Dalton played his first nine seasons for the Bengals after his selection in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft, leading the team to five consecutive playoff appearances from 2011 to 2015, the only quarterback to do so for the franchise. Since losing the 1988 Super Bowl, the Bengals that had been to the playoffs just three times. But Dalton was only named a Pro-Bowl quarterback three times in nine years.

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In his first season, Dalton and wide receiver AJ Green created the records for completions and yards by a rookie quarterback/receiver combination. Dalton’s first three seasons also saw him become one of ten NFL quarterbacks to throw for over 3,000 yards and one of six to throw 20 touchdowns. He is also one of only five NFL quarterbacks to reach the playoffs in his first five seasons. By the end of his tenure with the Bengals, Dalton had set the franchise records for passing yards in a season, passing touchdowns in a season, and career passing touchdowns.

Dalton was released by the Bengals in 2020 following four consecutive losing seasons and signed a one-year contract with the Cowboys as a backup for Dak Prescott, before joining the Bears in 2021.