During the Bengals' preseason opener last Friday, offensive coordinator Hue Jackson and quarterback Andy Dalton reached a special point in their player/coach relationship.
Jackson called a play and Dalton hated it. So, Dalton did what he thought was right and changed it.
"A lot of people say that's a negative," Jackson said Monday, via ESPN.com. "That's a positive to me. That's where you want your quarterback to be. That's the kind of relationship that you want to have with him where he can feel comfortable and say, 'Not that one.'"
This can be looked at two different ways, but in reality, Bengals fans should like the fact that Dalton is taking more of command of the offense.
Confidence in a quarterback is essential and it's been a factor visibly missing in some of Dalton's more lackluster performances from the past two years.
This is a massively important season for the future of the Bengals' franchise. Getting the incredibly elusive playoff win under Marvin Lewis would go a long way toward changing the perception of a good-but-not-great team that has lingered around the AFC North for almost a decade now.
If newfound confidence is the mechanism that drives them over the hump, Lewis would certainly be all right with his quarterback changing a few plays every now and then.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast breaks down Week 1 of the preseason and kicks off a week's worth of spectacular fantasy insight.
