10 NFL free agency signings for 2021 that could backfire

6. Andy Dalton, Quarterback, Chicago Bears

The good news for the Chicago Bears is that they didn’t stick with the veteran quarterback as their only option after declaring him QB1. Chicago signed Andy Dalton to a one-year deal after he spent last season with the Dallas Cowboys, where he started nine games for an injured Dak Prescott.

Dalton was 4-5 in those games and finished with a decent stat line. He completed 64.9 percent of his passes for 2,170 yards with 14 touchdowns and eight picks. Still, he proved that he was mostly a game manager and wasn’t able to win the weakest division in the NFL despite having three pass catchers with enough talent to hit 1,000-yards receiving.

Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup were both able to eclipse the mark in 2019 and rookie CeeDee Lamb came close during his first season. There was also Ezekiel Elliott, Tony Pollard, and Dalton Schultz on the roster — a tight end who broke out after Blake Jarwin was injured.

All that being said, Dalton couldn’t get it done with great talent around him which means he won’t be able to succeed in Chicago without as many playmakers. Again, they did get a rookie in Justin Fields but this is another area where Dalton could hurt them.

Head coach Matt Nagy seems the type to start a veteran simply for the sake of starting a veteran — even though Fields is the better option. Not only that but with the way the CBA limits practice time, the starter gets far more reps, meaning Fields needs to start to develop. This isn’t 1984 anymore where the young player sits for four years to develop. It’s 2021 and in order to get better, the players need the reps.

This means Dalton might hurt Fields’ growth if he does start and takes too many of those valuable reps.