Andy Dalton Contract Not a Priority for Bengals, VP Troy Blackburn Says

The Cincinnati Bengals don't appear to be in a rush to get a new contract done with quarterback Andy Dalton. 

Bengals vice president Troy Blackburn explained why right now isn't the right time to engage Dalton in talks on a new deal, per Geoff Hobson of the team's official website:

"We didn't sign the Andy Dalton deal because we thought it was a good deal. At the time it was an expensive deal. It was a heavy lift. We did it because Andy was a winning starting quarterback in the National Football League, he had demonstrated that. We know statistically your best chance of success is by rewarding your own players and maintaining that quality core. That is what drove that. We are certainly aware quarterback deals have evolved since then. We know that at the right time we will have to evolve as well. We don't think this is the time right now. What we are going to focus on right now is building the best team for 2018 we possibly can."

Dalton signed a six-year contract extension prior to the 2014 season worth up to $96 million, but it only included $17 million in guaranteed money, per Spotrac. He's going to count $16.3 million against the cap next season with $2.4 million in dead cap space. 

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio noted when Dalton signed the deal that it's essentially structured like a year-to-year contract, giving the Bengals the chance to move on without significant salary-cap ramifications. 

Since being a second-round draft pick by the Bengals in 2011, Dalton has led the franchise to five postseason appearances. The 30-year-old struggled last season with a completion percentage of 59.9, his lowest since he was a rookie.