Cowboys sign Andy Dalton to a one-year contract

According to Andy Schefter of ESPN, quarterback Andy Dalton of Katy, Texas signed a one year contract with the Dallas Cowboys. In the contract, Dalton is set to make a guaranteed amount of $3 million, but could see him make up to $7 million.

Dalton was released by the Cincinnati Bengals last week. He had been with the Bengals as their starting quarterback since his rookie season of 2011. Last season, Dalton played in 14 games and completed 314 of 528 passes for 3494 yards. He also had 16 touchdown passes compared to 14 interceptions.

On the ground, Dalton had 32 carries for 72 yards rushing and four touchdowns. Dalton’s four rushing touchdowns tied a career-high as he also had four rushing touchdowns in 2012, 2014 and 2016.

In Dallas, Dalton will be backing up Dak Prescott of Sulphur, Louisiana. Prescott has been the Cowboys starting quarterback since 2016 and made headlines last month for hosting a birthday party at his home while the state of Texas was in lockdown because of coronavirus. There are currently 30, 522 cases of coronavirus in Texas and 847 deaths.

There is also a question if Prescott fits into the Cowboys’ long term plans. He is currently set to make $31.4 million in 2020, but is an unrestricted free agent at this time for 2021. The fact that Prescott has been “behaving foolishly during coronavirus lockdown,” according to Alex Reimer of Forbes Magazine, could hurt his chances in negotiating a multi-year contract with the Cowboys past this season. The addition of Dalton gives the Cowboys much needed quarterback stability just in case if Prescott does not fit into Dallas’s long term plans.