The Facts: Dalton broke his right thumb during a loss to Pittsburgh on Dec. 13 and sat out the rest of the season, including a first-round playoff loss to the Steelers. He was cleared to fully work out in March and is back to throwing every pass without a problem, one of the most encouraging signs for the Bengals as they start another offseason of moving beyond their years of playoff angst. "I've never had that much time off from throwing, so I was just getting back into it again and making sure mechanically everything was sound," Dalton said Monday.
Diehards Line:
Dalton was having the best season of his career — his long-awaited breakthrough year — when he broke his thumb while making a tackle during an interception return. AJ McCarron led the Bengals to a pair of wins in the last three regular-season games and had the Bengals ahead in the closing minutes of the playoff loss before the defense melted down with penalties, allowing Pittsburgh to pull out an 18-16 win. Dalton finished with a passer rating of 106.3, breaking Carson Palmer's club record. He finished second in the NFL behind Seattle's Russell Wilson (110.1). He completed a career-best 66.1 percent of his passes for 25 touchdowns with only seven interceptions, a career low. That seventh interception led to the broken thumb. The team will be hoping Dalton's presence helps them get that elusive playoff win this year.