Andy Dalton Andrew Gregory Dalton ( born October 29 , 1987 ) is an American football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for Texas Christian University ( TCU ) . In his final college game , the 2011 Rose Bowl against the Wisconsin Badgers , Andy Dalton led the Horned Frogs to a 21 - 19 win over the three point underdog Badgers . He left the TCU program as its all - time leader in wins and many statistical passing categories . Some draft experts felt that while Dalton ' s accuracy as a passer , his above - average mobility , and his ability to throw on the run were his high points , his lack of a strong throwing arm was a detriment . He was selected by the Bengals in the second round ( thirty - fifth overall ) of the 2011 NFL Draft and signed a four - year , $ 5 . 2 million contract . New Bengals offensive coordinator Jay Gruden instituted a west coast - style offensive scheme to help maximize Dalton ' s talents , and he and rookie receiver A . J . Green , the Bengals 2011 first round selection from the University of Georgia , have become a prolific quarterback / receiver combination . Dalton and Green broke NFL records for completions and yards for a rookie quarterback / receiver combination , even without the benefit of an offseason . Due to his red hair , Dalton has been nicknamed The Red Rifle by Bengals fans . High school career . Andy Dalton attended Katy High School in Katy , Texas . He led the Tigers to the state finals his senior year in 2005 . That year , he was named the Greater Houston Area offensive player of the year by the " Houston Chronicle " . During his high school career , Dalton completed 80 percent of his passes for 15 , 550 yards with 70 touchdowns and 10 interceptions . College career . Andy Dalton committed to Texas Christian University . He was redshirted his freshman year , but he traveled with the team to every road game and was listed as the Horned Frogs ' third - string quarterback behind senior Jeff Ballard and redshirt freshman Marcus Jackson . Entering the 2007 season , Dalton was in competition with Jackson to be the starting quarterback . Two weeks before the season opener against Baylor , TCU head coach Gary Patterson named Dalton the starter . Dalton was named the 2007 Texas Bowl MVP in TCU ' s 20 - 13 victory over Houston . After going 8 - 5 as a freshman , he accumulated a record of 34 - 3 as a starter for the rest of his career at TCU . In the 2008 season , Dalton led TCU to an 11 - 2 record , finishing in second place in the Mountain West Conference and seventh in the national AP Poll . He was named the 2008 Poinsettia Bowl MVP in the Horned Frogs ' 17 - 16 win over Boise State . In the 2009 season , Dalton led the Horned Frogs to a perfect 12 - 0 regular season , a Mountain West Conference Championship , a # 6 ranking in the AP Poll , and a BCS berth . The Horned Frogs lost 17 - 10 in the Fiesta Bowl to Boise State . On September 4 , 2010 , Andy Dalton recorded his thirtieth victory as the Horned Frogs starting quarterback , passing Sammy Baugh as TCU ' s all - time wins leader . Against Baylor , Dalton completed 21 of 23 pass attempts ( a career - best 91 . 3 % ) for 267 yards and two touchdown s . His team won a second consecutive Mountain West Conference Championship . On January 1 , 2011 , Dalton , who completed 194 of 293 passes for 2638 yards for 26 touchdowns during his senior season , led his team to a 21 - 19 victory in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena , California . His TCU football team finished the season with a perfect 13 - 0 record and # 2 ranking in the AP Poll , just one of two teams with a perfect record along with Auburn . Dalton holds school career records for wins ( 42 ) , touchdown passes ( 71 ) , passing yards ( 10 , 314 ) , pass attempts ( 1 , 317 ) , completions ( 812 ) , and completion percentage ( 61 . 6 ) . He also holds single - season records for touchdown passes ( 27 ) , set in the 2010 season ; and attempts ( 371 ) , set in the 2007 season . He also holds the single game record for highest completion percentage , 91 . 3 percent , which was set against Baylor in 2010 . Dalton is also the MWC career leader in total offense ( 11 , 925 yards ) and plays from scrimmage ( 1 , 730 ) . Professional career . Cincinnati Bengals . 2011 season . After being drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals , there was much speculation over who would be the Bengals ' starting quarterback , Dalton or veteran Bruce Gradkowski . Carson Palmer , the first overall draft pick in the 2003 NFL Draft , demanded to be traded or released , and was eventually traded later in the season . On August 8 , 2011 , before their first pre - season game versus the Detroit Lions , Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis released his first depth chart per NFL rules , but noted that it meant little . The depth chart had Dalton listed as the first - string quarterback , followed by Gradkowski . Andy Dalton ' s first ever NFL regular season start came on September 11 , 2011 , on the road against the Cleveland Browns . Dalton , in one half of play before leaving the game due to injury , completed 10 of his 15 pass attempts for 81 yards and 1 touchdown , posting a passer rating of 102 . 4 . The Bengals won the game , 27 - 17 . Dalton ' s second game on was also on the road , against the Denver Broncos . Despite a 24 - 22 loss , Dalton led a comeback , completing 19 of 29 pass attempts for 280 yards and 2 touchdowns in the second half alone , and achieving a passer rating of 107 . 0 for the game . Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis later noted that it was during the Denver game when he realized that the Bengals had their quarterback of the future . In a 27 - 17 victory against the Indianapolis Colts on October 16 , 2011 , Dalton completed 25 of 32 passes for 264 yards and 1 touchdown . In that game , Dalton had a season - high 78 . 1 completion percentage and 111 . 5 quarterback rating . On November 3 , 2011 , Dalton was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month for October . Dalton led the Bengals to a 4 - 0 record with 909 yards passing and 6 touchdowns in the month . Dalton then threw for 217 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Tennessee Titans in a comeback 24 - 17 victory on November 6 , earning him Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week honors . On November 27 , Dalton passed for 270 yards and a touchdown in a comeback 23 - 20 victory over the Cleveland Browns , again winning Rookie of the Week . This game featured a 51 - yard strike from Dalton to AJ Green with only 1 : 08 remaining in the fourth quarter , setting up the Bengals ' game - winning field goal . By the end of the season , Dalton had led the Bengals to a 9 - 7 record and a berth in the NFL playoffs . On January 7 , 2012 , the Bengals faced the T . J . Yates - led Houston Texans in the wild - card round of the NFL playoffs . This game marked the first time in NFL playoff history that two rookie quarterbacks started in the same game against each other . Dalton completed over 64 % of his passes but also had three turnovers as the Texans won the game , 31 - 10 . During his rookie season , Dalton had four wins featuring fourth - quarter comebacks ( vs . Buffalo , at Jacksonville , at Tennessee , and vs . Cleveland ) . He is the only quarterback in NFL history not drafted in the first round to start all 16 games of his rookie season , much less start his team ' s playoff game as well . Dalton became just one of five rookie quarterbacks with over 3 , 000 passing yards and at least 20 touchdown passes , joining fellow rookie Cam Newton and also Peyton Manning , Dan Marino , and Charlie Conerly . Among this group , Dalton is the only one to have at least 8 wins as a rookie . At the conclusion of the season , Dalton received the Emerging Player Award from the NFL Players Association during the NFLPA PULSE Awards . The other nominees for the award were Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton , New Orleans Saints TE Jimmy Graham , New England Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski , and Detroit Lions DT Ndamukong Suh . Dalton was named initially as a Pro Bowl Alternate in his first year , and was added to the AFC Pro Bowl roster after the New England Patriots won the AFC Championship , forcing Tom Brady to withdraw . Dalton and Newton became the first pair of rookie quarterbacks to make the Pro Bowl in the same season . During the 2012 Pro Bowl , Dalton threw for 99 yards and 2 touchdowns for a quarterback rating of 152 . 1 . 2012 season . Starting the season on " Monday Night Football " on September 10 , 2012 , Dalton and the Bengals faced the Baltimore Ravens . The young QB struggled , going 22 of 37 for 221 yards and an interception in a 44 - 13 loss . This dropped him to 0 - 3 against the Ravens in his career . In the second game of the season on September 16 , 2012 , Dalton guided the Bengals to a 34 - 27 victory at home over the Cleveland Browns . He completed 24 of 31 passes for 318 yards , 3 touchdowns , and an interception , for a 128 . 2 quarterback rating . In the following game at the Washington Redskins , Dalton completed 19 of 27 passes for 328 yards , 3 touchdowns , and an interception , for a career - high 132 . 9 quarterback rating , in leading the Bengals to a 38 - 31 win . Furthermore , Dalton lined up as a wide receiver on the first play from scrimmage of the game , acting as a decoy while wildcat quarterback Mohamed Sanu threw a 73 - yard touchdown pass to AJ Green , then again flanked as a receiver while BenJarvus Green - Ellis rushed for a touchdown via a direct snap . The following week at the Jacksonville Jaguars , Dalton threw for 244 yards and had three touchdowns ( two passing , one rushing ) in leading the Bengals to a 27 - 10 victory . On October 14 , 2012 , Dalton threw for a career - high 381 yards to go with three touchdowns against the Cleveland Browns , but the Bengals fell to the Browns 34 - 24 . This was the second game in what would become a four - game losing streak . Dalton and the Bengals rebounded by defeating the New York Giants in a 31 - 13 game , in which Dalton completed 21 of 30 passes for 199 yards and a career - high four touchdowns , attaining a 127 . 6 quarterback rating . For his efforts against the Giants , Dalton was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week . The following week , the Bengals beat the Kansas City Chiefs 28 - 6 as Dalton completed 18 of 29 passes for 230 yards and two passing touchdowns ( a 109 . 8 quarterback rating ) while adding a rushing touchdown . On November 25 , 2012 , in a much - hyped game with the Oakland Raiders due to the return of former Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer to Cincinnati , Dalton outperformed Palmer by throwing for 210 yards and three touchdowns , achieving a 109 . 0 quarterback rating , and leading the Bengals to a 34 - 10 victory . In the fourth quarter , an unnecessary roughness penalty by Lamarr Houston on Dalton was one part of a sequence of events leading to the ejections of Andrew Whitworth , Tommy Kelly , and Houston from the game . With his performance , Dalton became one of three players in NFL history with at least 20 touchdown passes in each of his first two seasons , joining Peyton Manning and Dan Marino . In two of the next three following weeks , Dalton ' s mobility proved to be valuable as he scrambled for the go - ahead touchdown runs in victories over the San Diego Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles . On December 23 , 2012 against the Pittsburgh Steelers , his 21 - yard throw to AJ Green with fourteen seconds remaining set up the game - winning field goal , propelling the Bengals to a 13 - 10 victory and a second consecutive berth in the NFL playoffs . This game marked the first time Dalton was able to defeat the divisional rival Steelers , and the first time the Bengals made the playoffs in consecutive seasons since 1981 - 1982 . The following week , Dalton threw for a touchdown and a 101 . 5 quarterback rating in one half of play in a 23 - 17 Bengals win over the Ravens , who rested many starters in anticipation of the playoffs . This marked Dalton ' s first victory over the divisional rival Ravens and capped a 10 - 6 regular season record . On January 5 , 2013 , Dalton and the Bengals faced the Houston Texans in the wild - card round of the NFL playoffs . In a defensive struggle with neither Dalton nor Texans quarterback Matt Schaub able to pass for a touchdown , the Bengals lost 19 - 13 , the second consecutive year the Bengals fell to the Texans in the opening round of the playoffs . Personal life . Andy Dalton married Jordan Jones in July 2011 . The two have started a charity in the Greater Cincinnati area helping needy children and families .