Andy Dalton on 2011 Draft Class, Promising Sign From Bryce Young, and Second-Act Endeavor

We're here live in LA with Off the Edge with Cam Jordan. I got, I got so much to say today. I think that I'm just blessed to be here with another guy from draft class twenty eleven. I'm bringing in my guy who's a quarterback for me two seasons ago. Andy Dalton started off in twenty eleven, drafted to Cincinnati. Had had a phenomenal career with the Bengals. Bengals you say, Bengals are Bingles Bangles Bengals, and then you know, comes comes comes down to New Orleans two years ago. Was

In, tapping in, Bro, that's how we're gonna go into this thing, and let's do it.

You know, yeah, you know, you and your wife, me and my wife. We sit down at whatever Greek restaurant it was in New Orleans. After the season, I was like, huh, we have dinner dinner buddies now.

Talking about our big plans of how we're gonna do life. Together, and next thing, you know, I'm no longer there.

We're gone, like all my friends have been years.

It just means we're old. You've been doing things the right way, you know.

You know for all the things that we've talked about. You know, somewhere somewhere during that season we bought we brought back red red rocket, red rifle. I think I messed that up seventy five times during the season. I was like, for whatever it was you were, you were slinging, wheeling and dealing uh the rock, and and it came back up for for a solid two or three weeks like we were. We were in team meetings, we had the Cincinnati Bengals play where you became red rifle and red rocket, red.

Rifle, red rifle, red rifle.

Yeah, double R.

Well, then there's obviously a great when you were miked up one time, you were giving me a lot of love on the sideline, a lot of red rifle comments.

Uh, double r double R. I love it.

Oh man. Did you have any any favorite travels this

Trying to think we uh, you know, being in in Carolina and being in Charlotte, We've we've done a couple of little weekend trips down to like Charleston are out to the mountains and highlands and cashiers and stuff like that. But then we didn't Yeah, then exactly, I knew nothing

We go get get a little get a little little vacation in love love that part.

Well, we're part of the Bahamash. We were in Nasau.

Okay, did you did you do the little was that? Is that the one where they had the pigs the swimming.

We did not do that.

Okay, there's one of the zombers, but there's apparently one in a Nassau.

Sure, what about you, you're the one that's all over the place.

No, man, Look, I just uh I had to get surgery. So that's didn't bring my travel plans. But I did just come back from Liberia, you know, hit Ghana early on. Love Ghana so much I doubled back for second Africa trip. I think the next one. Uh me and me and Nikki are going to like try and dip into Japan.

Yeah, I think I saw something. She something happened where they alls. Maybe mother in law couldn't couldn't come watch the kids, and so she had to stay back.

And you know, I was like, man, I gotta go to Ghana by myself. Crazy. Over a thirteen years headed

It definitely has, And I think you know, especially when you get into the season, you obviously have seen so much football, you know how certain teams are going to play you, so you can spend time on little details rather than the big picture of it all.

And so.

As you know, you get into your thirteen fourteen whatever it is, and you're not having to think as much. You're just able to react and play and know what's coming.

And so.

The preparation from an end season standpoint, and then offseason, you know, everybody's got the got their different way of doing things. But I feel like I've got a good routine of everything that I do.

Having us here, let's just talk about it. I talked with Roman and Peanut Tillman earlier and they, you know, they challenged me on our draft class, and.

You know, I was like, what did they challenge you with?

I don't know. Our draft class is the greatest ever. I just I was like, it's the best, We're the best.

Just look at the first round.

Which which is crazy because we can bring up second, third, fourth, But it seems like every draft class is is sort of heavily regarded by their first class. Right, They're just like, all right, the first class. You look at the first round and you're gonna be like, all right, that's your draft class, which is crazy because there was guys like you. There was guys like justin Houston, there's Richard Sherman. But

It's crazy hard to miss.

The significant progress on how to draft the draft class?

Yeah, what and Pro bowlers?

And there there's gonna be arguably a lot of Hall of famers in that right too.

That's what I'm just so.

I mean again, I guess if you say best draft class ever, it's that's subjective. Everybody's got an opinion, but everybody, I mean, there's there's I think the numbers aren't gonna lie.

On this one. That's what I'm saying. You should just trust trust the numbers. That happened. You know, there was Cam Newton number one. Uh, then we go Von Miller, Marcel Darius. Then it gets even better, aj Aj You guys came together. That's a hell of a draft class. You drafted Andy Dalton and AJ Green and put them together. So that's a great connection. Uh. Then from there you know Patrick Peterson, Julio Jones, Alden Smith, and then you

There's a lot of hundred guys in this j Yeah, J. J.

Watt, Robert Quinn, myself, Ryan Kerrigan stopped at like what nine nineties, ninety four and a half. I'm like, come on, just get two hundred. Finish it. But you know there was there's a tackle Nate Solder, what a couple of championships with ye with the Patriots. You know we had I know you weren't there. We had Prince of Mukamira.

Yeah, come to the come to the Saint.

I was not there, but I've been around Prince Prince the great guy.

Great guy. But just talk about that first draft like there was, there was excellence, and then we're still in the top twenty. Then there was you know, me at twenty four, mark Ingram twenty eight, Mohammad Wilgerson that you know, was that twenty thirty and then Cam Hayward Pro Bowlers.

Yeah, this provo is all over. That all over that drafts all.

Over And then you talk about again, second, third, fourth round guys like you again justin Houston, Richard Sherman. There was guys that were just making names for themselves from our draft class. I'm I'm just going to continue and stay we're the best draft cleft to ever.

In the amount of times that we talked about this when we were teammates a couple of years ago twenty eleven best draft class, Boom dam.

I'm just gonna keep saying it. I'm hope that everybody hears me. So I'm just gonna do like if you

I mean I would think that I would be the second quarterback taken. I think Cam still goes number one overall. I mean just I mean, look what he was able to do and in his time and when he was at the height of his career, I mean, he was one of the most one of the more exciting players in the league for sure, And so I would assume that I would probably be the second quarterback taken.

But you take Blaina, Blaine Gabbert or no Jake Locker at Tennessee.

So but I'm not mad about what happened.

Absolutely not.

If I could go in the second round instead of the first round and have aj Green go in the first round and that be my guy all day, I'm taking where I went.

Yeahere do you go like a seven thousand yard seasons in a row eight thousand something crazy something ridiculous crazy. You're out there just red rifling that thing, just wheeling and dealing. What do you think is the most significant

Well, I think the style of play has also changed because it was a very much run first league when we first came in the league. And now obviously it's all about the past game, all about the quarterback, all about trying to score.

Points and all that kind of stuff.

And even that has changed because now you can throw over the middle and not get reprimanded.

It's used to be able.

To your rookieyear you threw over the middle, you had people coming down heel.

It's I mean, the player safety stuff. It makes it hard on somebody that's playing defense. You know where you can hit the quarterback, where you can hit a receiver. Is it in the head, is it in the shoulder? Is it it's it's tough to be defender these days, it's it's hard to play. But I mean, I I understand the argument if we want to protect guys, but at the end of the day, how do you Your natural instincts are going to take over.

And no doubt if I'm if I'm coming downhill, do you think I'm really thinking, No, you're not my head. Let's go across the bow it.

I have to make sure that's going to come into this whole hip drop hip drop tackle things.

I don't even know what I now. Yeah, until they made it a thing, and now it's.

Like, I don't know.

Are you're in the middle of making a tackle you're going to think I can't do that and let go.

Don't let me swilve all my hips. In fact, let me let him go so he can gain more yards.

Yeah, okay, I'm all for fifteen yards. Let's keep it. Let's keep it going.

First down sucks for you can also move me on down the field. That hurts bro.

Now that you're over at Carolina and you've you've gone through a few teams, uh one, do you have a favorite franchise. I'm gonna say this. I'm just gonna say, Okay, I'm not gonna let you answer that. And then two, you know when you when you went to Charlotte, you know, before they drafted Bryce Young, I was like, all right, he went from starter in New Orleans two starter Charlotte and then they drafted Bryce Young, and you know the reins were given. How is your relationship between you and him?

Well, you know when I left New Orleans, I obviously got to start for it's fourteen games or something like that.

Yeah, and uh, I felt like I played pretty well.

And for me going into that that free agency that year, you know, there wasn't uh, there wasn't a ton of opportunity for me to go and to be the day one starter. I got to Carolina and knowing they had the first overall pick, you know what's going to happen there, regardless of how good I was playing in the off season and the OTAs and all that kind of stuff, And in training camp it's the number one overall pick.

He's going to play, and so.

I knew that going in, so it made it easier, like mentally going into it and saying, Okay, regardless of what you do, you still prove yourself. From day one, I walked in and said, like, you know, I'm going to show you what I can do. And you know, I felt good about what I was able to do this past year and just being on the team and to help Bryce and to help him grow. Obviously, it was a year of he had to handle a lot

I'm not saying that's gonna be easy to do.

But when we play Saints, it's two wins on the schedule for us.

Yes, okay, was there a moment or throw or a

There was a game we played against the Packers. We did not end up winning the game, but you could tell he kind of took over in the game and was like everything was flowing. He was he was playing on time, playing in rhythm, making big players, getting out of the pocket, finding guys down the field, and it was a game like, okay, this is what this is like, shows what he can be if we kind of get everything around him built built the way it needs to.

On, okay, right, and building block, especially for a young quarterback, is key. Confidence is key. Not that you know it's.

Year one, it's your year one, you know, but.

As a number one overall pick, you know how bright that spotlight was.

Yeah, No, for sure, and I think especially with the success of some of the other quarterbacks in that in that draft class too. Yeah CJ. I mean, he had an unbelievable year. But the best thing for you, as you know, is experience to be out there. If you're not. If you're not out there, you're not getting that experience and you're not.

That trial through fire is real because then then you really figure out that mental spot too, like you figure out if you're a dog and that that's like able to weather the storm or do you sort of like tuck the tail, like I can't do this right? Like you could shine bright whenever you're having immediate success, but are you still shining as brightly like when you're not

Physically, This is the best I've ever felt because you're not taking any hit. You know, I got one. I got one game this year and uh, you know, I felt the little sore and felt like I was part of it. Then after that my body was feeling great and the best I felt going into an off season. But I think it allows you time to focus on some other things too, you know, your body being one

And so yeah, I feel like I'm in I'm in a great place.

Right now, okay, mentally meaning that I'm not ready to go whenever that that I figured.

You say, you all walked in into the off season feeling the best you've ever felt. That probably bodes well just in case your number is called.

It is to you what my hill is now is tennis.

Ye.

Yes, I wasn't expecting.

I mean I sort of I should have should have expected.

You should have you knew that that was going on. JJ was getting your no no out there.

Get my wife Nikki out there and starting to play. Now She's like, babe, what are we going to play? Yeah, we're not. I was like, my body hurts. Actually, I'm looking forward to pick a ball that's gonna be mine.

Well, the good the good thing is tennis translates so well to playing quarterback with all the different movements that you do. And so I've been all in and uh, that's been my office game changer.

How much longer do you want to play?

How much longer do you want to play? Again?

The conversations that we had in the conversation sitting in the locker room waiting for this, Yeah, you know, I want to go as long as it keeps making sense for me and my family and my body feels great. I feel like, you know, I can keep going. I think it'd be fun to to touch forty years old.

Wow, yeah, so you're you're my hero.

We'll see thirty six right now, be thirty seven in October, so only a couple more years. But we'll see if, as you know, we get to this thing and we evaluate after each season and see if we want to keep going. But I'm still loving it. I still enjoy the game, still still love all the stuff that goes into it.

And so and that's why we're here at there, we are at the broadcast workshop. What are you looking forward

I think there's so many different avenues and different you know, realms of the media, and we as players see it from one side.

Now you obviously different. You've got your.

Whole cool graphic up here with off the Yeah yeah, this.

Off the Edge podcast and and all the different things. But you get to see the different side of the media and and kind of get to experience all the different things rather be from calling a game to doing podcasts, to being in studio and all the all the different things.

See if you want to pursue. So you see yourself in the space, like how active do you see? Are you going to like Pat McAfee, like build out your own studio in Charlotte and just make the media come to you, or are you going to you know, do like you know these these quarterbacks do and have the deal done years in advance and then just.

Go hey, we'll see I'm here. So that's step one, right, right.

Step. Step one is showing up. Ye can't can't, can't get a blessing if without ever stepping into the church. You know, So I understand, gotta gotta step in and see what makes the most sense. I look forward to that just because, like people don't know how fun you are. You know what I'm saying, Like I feel like they know any Dalton the quarterback.

I always have our lit I was talking out here and with one of these guys, I'm saying, I feel like I've been very vanilla in my interviews, you.

Know how a lot of people do.

It's like you ask the question and I'm going to answer, and I'm not going to answer your question, but I'm just going to say what I want to say and kind of move on from there. And so this is a good opportunity to kind of get to show a little bit of personality.

Let the red hair flair.

The hair is flowing, all right.

Final question. Whenever they talk about quarterbacks, right, they talk about they may never talk about like the throw percentage. They never talk about like, hey, these are the wife shoes day through in his career, they talk about winning. At this point, should winning be a part of a quarterback stat.

I mean, I think it should because at the end of the day, it's all about winning. The business is, you know, that's what it's all about.

Now.

Winning can look a lot different based off of what team you're on, who you have around you, and all that kind of stuff. Losses can look a lot different based off who you know, what team you're on, who you have around you, all that nobody cares about.

Like how you didn't have any receivers or throw to, you know, like for whatever it is, quarterbacks get judged quickly and like, oh they won two games last year, three games last year, ten games last year. They get judge asap just off of you know, whatever whatever was given.

To I mean, I think the people that really know, we're going to go and look and see, Okay, well why right, you know, like the average fan doesn't care about your average fan is going on online and looking at stats.

Looking looking up the fantasy points that they.

See the fantasy points and all that kind of stuff. And but I think that's what makes guys special. People are just gonna talk about Tom because of what he was able to do win seven Super Bowls, playing ten, Like for a while there it was our whole career he was playing in the super Bowl, like every year he was in super Bowl, super Bowl, super Bowl and shooting what Patrick's been able to do at the start of his career.

I mean it's like, what.

Has been four out of seven super Bowls the seven years you've been here, four of them?

Like, yeah, it's one, so don't we all?

But you know, I think that's what makes the good ones great now you can you know, again, based off your team, there's been some quarterbacks that have made it to the super Bowl and haven't maybe not the one. Some have won super Bowls that they weren't the ones that.

Was definitely worth the driving driving force. You'd say the team one.

The team ones. Yeah, but uh, at the end of the day, that's what you're measured by. So that's all it matters.

I appreciate That's all the questions I have for you. I appreciate you for tapping in at the show man. I know you're here badcasts, but even saying yes to getting you on the pod, I'm super excited for you this week. I hope you do join media whatever capacity that you see fit. Thank you to the listeners. Thank you guys for listening. To the pod tapping wherever you get your your podcast, the Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio app wherever you get it, make sure to follow, hit the likes,