The winless Cincinnati Bengals are making a change at quarterback, benching longtime starter Andy Dalton in favor of rookie Ryan Finley.
Finley said coach Zac Taylor told him on Tuesday. The players were informed at team meetings before the locker room was opened to the media at 1:30 p.m. ET.
“Ryan has put in a lot of extra time these first eight weeks, like any backup quarterback does,” Taylor said. “Everything I’ve seen from him shows us that he can handle it.”
The Bengals (0-8) have a bye this week. They return to action with a home game against the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 10.
Cincinnati drafted Finley out of North Carolina State in the fourth round (104th overall) of the 2019 draft. He will be the fourth quarterback from NC State to start in 2019, joining Philip Rivers of the Chargers, the Seahawks‘ Russell Wilson and the Colts‘ Jacoby Brissett.
Dalton, a three-time Pro Bowl selection, has thrown for 2,252 yards with nine touchdown passes and eight interceptions this season. He has 30,352 passing yards, 197 touchdowns and 112 interceptions in 128 starts for the Bengals since being selected in the second round (35th overall) of the 2011 draft.
He had 50 wins in his first five seasons, third most of any starting QB during that span. He is 18-32-1 since then, with 11 consecutive losses.
He is 0-4 in the playoffs for the Bengals, who haven’t won a postseason game since 1990.
Dalton, who turned 32 on Tuesday, is under contract through the 2020 season and is due a base salary of $17.5 million next season.