Jaguars 'absolutely interested' in Andy Dalton

The Jacksonville Jaguars are reportedly interested in former Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton

The Jaguars are "absolutely interested" in former Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton according to ESPN's Jeff Darlington. 

Second-year quarterback Gardner Minshew is expected to be the starter, but Jacksonville would be open to signing Dalton as a backup.

The move would reunite Dalton with offensive coordinator Jay Gruden, who held the same position with the Bengals from 2011-2013. 

Gruden loved Dalton during the pre-draft process and is a big reason the Bengals took him with the 35th overall selection in 2011. The duo made the playoffs in each of their three seasons together. 

The Bengals released Dalton on Thursday, one week after taking Joe Burrow with the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. The nine year veteran is hoping to compete for a starting job, but there aren't many organizations on the hunt for a starting quarterback at this point in the offseason. 

Dalton is the Bengals’ all-time leader in completions (2757), touchdown passes (204), passer rating (87.5) and 300-yard passing games (28). He holds the team’s single-season records for passing yards (4,293 in 2013), touchdown passes (33 in ’13) and passer rating (106.3 in ’15).

Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone told NFL Network that the team "might look at" some veteran quarterbacks that are on the market. 

Dalton is arguably the best option available. He led the Bengals to five straight playoff appearances from 2011-2015. Cincinnati went 50-26-1 over that stretch. He's made 133 regular season starts and is a three-time Pro Bowler. 

New England is another potential landing spot for Dalton. If he's willing to accept a backup role in 2020, then there would be a much bigger market for his services.