Bengals owner noncommittal on paying Andy Dalton

Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown was noncommittal when asked whether the team is planning to sign quarterback Andy Dalton to a lucrative new deal.

The Bengals are still contemplating whether to do so.

“More often than not you don’t win overpaying a guy,” Brown told Cincinnati reporters, per the Cincinnati Enquirer. ”With quarterbacks there is another dilemma. With a fixed cap there is a certain amount of money and no more. You allocate that on a quarterback you have less to hand out to everybody else. It can cause attrition. We are going through a difficult time right now because we are trying to work through a deal with Andy and trying to hold back enough money in the cap to do that, yet we don’t know what that is. . . .

“Do you have a high-priced quarterback and less elsewhere or do you try to have as many guys as you can have and maybe a quarterback that is young and not so highly paid? Seattle, for example of that. In fact, you look at the statistics it is rather surprising how few quarterbacks that are old in recent years — saying over 30 — have won the Super Bowl. They’ve gotten there but they haven’t won it. I don’t know is that better formula to go with a younger guy and spread the money around? That’s a dilemma for us. We are trying to work through it. It’s slow going. I can’t predict when we are going to get that matter resolved.”

Dalton has had his moments in the regular season, but has one touchdown and six interceptions in the playoffs.

Will the Bengals sign him to a long-term deal?

"We are going to try to get something done but I don't know if we are going to be able to or not," Brown said. "At some point we are going to have to do something more than just let everyone else leave waiting to get something done with that situation. We held back this year trying to put ourselves in a position to get him done. If it turns out it can't be made to work we will do something elsewhere. I don't think we plan to go another year the way we did this year."

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Aaron Wilson
Aaron Wilson covers the NFL for National Football Post, his second stint at the Post. He has previously written for Pro Football Talk and FOX Sports-Scout. Entering his 13th year covering the Baltimore Ravens, he's a beat writer for The Baltimore Sun. Wilson has also covered the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans.

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