A.J. Green
Despite all the redheaded buzz going into next week's start of training camp Andy Dalton's favorite target says this can't be the deciding year for the only NFL quarterback he's ever known.
That's because two-time Pro Bowl wide receiver A.J. Green says Dalton is the Bengals once and future quarterback as they head into their third seasons.
"I don't feel like it's a make-or-break year for him," Green said Wednesday morning as he camped out at Mason Middle School in the Cincinnati 'burbs. "He's still the quarterback of the future because he has every intangible to be a great one. He works hard, he has great leadership. I think he'll be fine."
He welcomed more than 300 campers to the first day of the Fifth Third A.J. Green Football ProCamp presented by CBTS that runs through Thursday, but he was also thinking about his teammates gathering for their first practice of camp in eight days. And the Dalton question is the one everyone is going to get early, but Green is steadfast.
"You look at Tom Brady and all the best quarterbacks in the league, it takes four or five years for them to really get in a groove," Green said. "Aaron Rodgers sat behind (Brett) Favre for years. (The criticism) comes with the territory."
