Cincinnati Bengals: 4 to buy, sell, or hold heading into Week 5
By Steve Rivera
This one is not complicated. Zac Taylor inherited a mess in Cincinnati. He has a bad and beat-up offensive line, a suspect defense that got beat by Mason Rudolph quite handily, and Injuries galore to players like John Ross and A.J. Green. However, in the NFL, you don’t fire players, you fire coaches.
Taylor isn’t going anywhere, at least not yet. But he does have a lot of ownership in the 0-4 start in Cincinnati. He was completely outcoached on Monday night in Pittsburgh. His lack of answers on both sides of the football is legitimate reasons for concern.
He is also the head coach of a team easy to scheme on, especially defensively. On offense, Dalton looked hesitant. He also looked like a quarterback with few options given the rush he faced. Adjustments were not the kind that helped do anything but add an assist to another loss.
Honesty is required here. The 2019 Cincinnati Bengals really aren’t his team. The 2020 edition may more closely resemble what Taylor has in mind when he sees his football team. Right now, it’s an inherited group providing little to no return. Even a win in Week 5 against a winless Cardinals team changes little.
Next. Bengals should do the right thing and trade A.J. Green. dark
Taylor is a “hold.” He’s a coach no one really knows about. Winning solves a lot of that, but those may be few this season. Best to be said is that the jury is still out.