The Cincinnati Bengals have been trying to do all they can to remain competitive without Joe Burrow, but after 10 weeks, they are still just 3-6. While the team did get a boost after acquiring veteran quarterback Joe Flacco, Cincinnati still hasn’t been able to overcome a bad defense. Now, with Burrow back at practice, the season may be too far gone to save.
While the Bengals have had to navigate some unfortunate circumstances, this will be another underwhelming season on the resume of head coach Zac Taylor. With those seasons starting to stack up, the head coach is officially on the hot seat. NFL reporter Ralph Vacchiano, in a recent piece for FOX Sports, did a hot seat ranking of seven current head coaches. Taylor, was ranked fourth on the list.
Zac Taylor ranked fourth amongst coaches who could be fired next
Vacchiano acknowledges the argument that Taylor can’t be held accountable for the performance of a Burrow-less Bengals team, but the reporter pushes back by arguing that Taylor’s coaching, even when Burrow is healthy, is still concerning enough for him to be on the hot seat.
"If you don’t think it’s fair to hold Taylor responsible for the failings of a team that lost quarterback Joe Burrow, then maybe you didn’t see how he coached them when Burrow was healthy. This has been a maddeningly and chronically underachieving team in each of the past three seasons, completely undermined by slow starts and baffling in-game decisions."Ralph Vacchiano (FOX Sports)
Although Taylor is an offensive coach, Vacchiano rightfully blames him for not being able to stabilize Cincinnati’s abysmal defense, and for his decision to hire Al Golden as defensive coordinator. While it may seem unfair to put the defensive struggles on the offensive-leaning head coach, the reality of being the person in charge is that you have to answer for everything.
Unfortunately for Cincinnati, the Bengals have fallen into a bit of a terrible cycle under Taylor, and he will eventually have to answer for that.
Unless he can miraculously turn things around, his days as the head coach in Cincinnati are numbered. Vacchiano isn’t confident the Bengals will actual fire Taylor, who has just one year left on his contract, but the reporter believes that would be the right decision.