Bengals' Andy Dalton Records Rare Touchdown Reception by Quarterback

With his first-quarter touchdown grab in Sunday's 33-7 win over the Tennessee Titans, Andy Dalton of the Cincinnati Bengals became the first NFL quarterback since Tyler Thigpen in 2008 to catch a touchdown pass, per ESPN Stats & Info.

The 18-yard score came via some trickery on the final play of the first quarter, as the signal-caller pitched the ball to wide receiver Mohamed Sanu, who was lined up to Dalton's right in the backfield. Dalton then ran a swing route to the left side, were Titans cornerback Blidi Wreh-Wilson had stayed home.

Sanu, a former college quarterback who threw a 50-yard pass to fellow wide receiver Brandon Tate last week, made a dangerous pass to Dalton that could have easily resulted in a pick-six. Luckily for the Bengals, Wreh-Wilson took a bad angle to the ball, not only failing to knock it down, but also failing to tackle Dalton, who quickly turned upfield and dove inside the left pylon.

According to NFL.com, Dalton is the first quarterback in Bengals history to record a touchdown reception.

Per Pro-Football-Reference.com's play index, only 15 different quarterbacks have caught a touchdown pass since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, with that group including Brad Smith and Kordell Stewart, both of whom saw extensive playing time at wide receiver. Smith, Stewart, Danny White and Jim McMahon are the only quarterbacks to record more than one touchdown catch since 1970.

While Dalton isn't a great bet to catch another, it can't be ruled out so long as the versatile Sanu sticks around in Cincinnati.