For the first nine years of his career, was locked in as the surefire starting quarterback for the . His quality of play merited that status for most of that time, but a decline toward the end of his tenure coupled with the Bengals landing the No. 1 overall pick in the draft the same year was coming out of college meant the end of Dalton's time in Cincinnati.Since then, Dalton has bounced around as a backup and part-time starter. First, he signed on to be backup in Dallas, only to be thrust into a starting role when Dak dislocated his ankle. Then, Dalton Julio Urias Jersey signed to ostensibly be the starter for the , but they traded up to select in the draft, meaning Dalton's tenure was sure to be limited -- and that's exactly what happened. Last offseason, he signed with the to compete with . Winston was initially named the starter, but Dalton played well filling in for Winston when the latter was injured, and he kept the job through the rest of the season.This offseason, the Saints moved on to , so Dalton was again looking for a new landing spot. He signed with the in free agency. Carolina had traded up from No. 9 to the No. 1 overall pick in the draft a few days earlier, so it's highly likely that Dalton knew he was again signing on to be a Curtis Granderson Jersey backup -- this time to .But Dalton doesn't think he's a backup-caliber player. "I view myself as a starter in this league; I don't think there are 32 guys better than me," Dalton said,. "But this is the situation I am in, and I understand that. As soon as I don't think I'm one of the best 32, or a little lower, I'll be watching football on TV." Dalton felt comfortable taking that role in Carolina in large part because of the coaches he'd be joining."I am in a really, really good Don Drysdale Jersey situation here; Frank Reich played til he was 38. He was a career backup," Dalton said. "He understands the continuity you want in a (quarterback) room. played until he was 40. Josh was my friend for the last 10 years, and now he's my coach." Pick Six Newsletter Crafted By The Best NFL Experts Get the day's big stories + fun stuff you love like mock drafts, picks and power rankings. I agree to receive the "Pick Six Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the and acknowledge Paramount's . Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. Now heading into his age-36 season Sandy Koufax Jersey and what will be his 13th year in the league, Dalton has a bit more nuanced of a perspective on how he might be viewed, even if he thinks his quality of play merits a larger role. "I look back at the last couple of years and some of the situations didn't turn out the way I would have liked," Dalton said. "Last year, I felt personally I A.J. Pollock Jersey felt I played good football, but we didn't win as many games and that is the most important thing. I have confidence in who I am as a player. Not a lot of people can say, 'This is Year 13 in the .' I feel good about where I am. It's fun to be in this position, to help the next generation of quarterbacks."