Much news has hit lately in regards to the New England Patriots potentially being open to trade offers for backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
Another backup quarterback that is starting to create some news buzz is Cincinnati Bengals’ A.J. McCarron. The Bengals are reportedly willing to listen to trade offers for their fourth-year backup.
Cincinnati’s director of player personnel Duke Tobin addressed the team’s position on the matter at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Wednesday.
Duke on McCarron: we'll listen
— Geoff Hobson (@GeoffHobsonCin) March 1, 2017
we're not actively looking to trade MCCarron. Won't rule out a division trade but not ideal
— Geoff Hobson (@GeoffHobsonCin) March 1, 2017
Tobin also said the Bengals are not “actively trying to diminish” the team by giving up McCarron in a trade, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
The Bengals selected McCarron in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He filled in for an injured Andy Dalton for seven games during 2015. During that stretch, McCarron performed pretty well. He completed 66.4 percent of his passes, threw for six touchdowns and two interceptions. He also started in the Wild Card playoff game following the close of the regular season.
Beyond McCarron in depth is third-stringer Jeff Driskel. At this time the Bengals only house three quarterbacks.
If the team let McCarron go, they would be in a pinch to bring another backup aboard.
There promises to be more rumors floating about regarding McCarron as free agency itself gets going. Multiple teams need to address the quarterback position, creating a solid market for squads looking to acquire value in trades.