Eagles release Andy Dalton

Dalton had a chance to re-sign with the Eagles after being let go by them earlier in the week, but he spurned them to sign with Atlanta. The 38-year-old vet will presumably serve as the Falcons’ third-string QB for now, but could be one injury away from seeing playing time. Dalton threw for 293-1-1 on 37 pass attempts for the Panthers last season and has not started more than five games in a season since 2022.

The Eagles released Dalton less than two weeks ago. According to Florio, the Eagles reached out to Dalton with an offer after Jalen Hurts’ superficial blood clot moved in his calf, resulting in an indefinite sidelining, and Dalton told the Eagles, “no, thank you.” Florio did not reveal where Dalton plans to sign, but we should get word on that before long.

McKee, 26, is a towering pocket passer (6'6/231) with 97 career dropbacks. He has two career starts and has made appearances in two other contests, averaging 6.8 yards per attempt and a 73.8 percent adjusted completion rate. McKee was the subject of trade rumors last offseason, but luckily, the Eagles kept him. He faces a Panthers secondary missing its two starting perimeter cornerbacks, though he has almost exactly 72 hours to get himself ready and the Eagles’ pass-catching corps is banged up. He is a viable QB2 in superflex formats, but he offers a wide range of potential outcomes. McKee is backed up by rookie Cole Payton. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo thinks the team could reunite with Andy Dalton, whom they released last week.

Dalton is “an option” for the Eagles, who are down to two available quarterbacks this week, Tanner McKee and rookie Cole Payton, with Jalen Hurts having been ruled out preemptively due to a superficial blood clot in his calf. The Eagles released Dalton last week. A few teams have reportedly checked in with Dalton since his release, “though there’s familiarity and a clear role in Philly for him if he decides to return.”

The Eagles demoted Andy Dalton after his end zone interception in Week 3. He took over for Jalen Hurts while the latter was being evaluated for an injury and immediately gave the ball away in scoring position. McKee has two career starts since being drafted in 2023.

To say the least, it’s going to be hard for the Eagles to recoup major draft capital in a trade for McKee if he can’t beat out an Andy Dalton who looked extremely washed last offseason. The backup quarterback battle updates in July will continue until morale improves.

It was previously reported that the Panthers were getting calls for Andy Dalton. The team then went out and signed Kenny Pickett, making it clear they were moving on from Dalton this offseason. Getting even a seventh-round pick in return for Dalton is mildly impressive for Panthers GM Dan Morgan. After the trade, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo insisted, “Tanner McKee firmly locked into the No. 2 spot behind Jalen Hurts.” That would be a bit odd given that the Eagles just sought out Dalton, though they did carry three quarterbacks on their roster last year.

Newton adds “even if it means releasing Dalton and leaving $3.83 million in dead cap money.” Things really crashed down hard from the Andy Dalton Combine “getting calls” experience. Dalton, who turns 39 in October, likely proved that he just wasn’t a good enough backup last year in his start against the Bills to keep paying a premium on. It wouldn’t be surprising if the Panthers cut him.

This comes a day after ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Panthers had been receiving calls about Dalton for a potential trade. Morgan said he “would talk to Andy” about any requests for a trade that may come through, but it’s hard to imagine the 38-year-old signal-caller being in high demand with free agency and the draft still to go. Dalton has one more year remaining on his current deal with the Panthers, and could make for a nice bridge for a team bringing in a younger quarterback, but wouldn’t be viewed as anything more than a one-year option.

Dalton has one year left on his current deal in Carolina. The team signed him as Bryce Young’s backup in 2023. He saw significant playing time in 2024 and the team kept him around as a break glass incase of emergency option to replace Young. Dalton was only needed for one start last year. He threw for 175 scoreless yards and an interception while taking seven sacks. The Panthers got trounced by the Bills with a final score of 9-40. The fact that there are still teams interested in Dalton, even as a backup, speaks to the stagnant state of quarterback play across the league. The Panthers wouldn’t fetch more than a late-round pick for Dalton.