The Cincinnati Bengals have a lot to answer for after Sunday's 48-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis, and in situations like this, the buck often stops at the head coach.
Zac Taylor led the Bengals to their first 2-0 start during his tenure, but he squandered a lot of that goodwill in Week 3. Taylor came to Minnesota with an underwhelming game plan, and Joe Burrow's stand-in starting quarterback, Jake Browning, struggled mightily in the blowout defeat.
Various corners of Who Dey Nation have called for Taylor's job on and off for years. Those haters won't be quieted with a performance like this.
Zac Taylor is firmly on the hot seat after Bengals' Week 3 embarrassment
In Taylor's defense, he has led the Bengals to a Super Bowl berth and another AFC title game appearance. The problem is, all that happened more than two seasons ago, and since then, Cincinnati has failed to make the playoffs.
The NFL is very much a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately league, and Taylor hasn't done much to write home about of late. There's a not-insignificant chunk of fans calling for his ouster in the admittedly emotionally-charged aftermath of Sunday's debacle.
If the #Bengals don’t fire Zac Taylor after this season - and Joe Burrow not playing shouldn’t save him because that’s also at least partially his fault - then the team is just signaling they’ve given up and only aspire to 8-9 records. pic.twitter.com/cvxhrUY59H
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) September 21, 2025
What continues to baffle me is how little variation there is in the running game. Much of it boils down to how well the offensive line blocks and what their collective skill set allows a coach to scheme up, yet Chase Brown is too talented of a tailback to be held to three whole yards on 10 carries.
The reality seems to be that Burrow is the catalyst for what makes the Bengals special. He is a virtual coach on the field who can overcome poor pass protection, an unimaginative-to-be-kind run game, and a rather bland Zac Taylor call sheet to elevate Cincinnati to perpetual Super Bowl contention.
To the perpetual Bengals/Taylor apologists, I promise I'm not the only one who thinks this way.
Zac Taylor has one of the worst schemes I’ve ever seen
— Blake Jewell (@BlakeJewellNFL) September 21, 2025
That is, when Burrow is healthy enough to be on the field. I felt like this was a noteworthy bit of information to bring up again, just as the individual who X posted/tweeted it out:
I’ll repeat this the Athletic two weeks ago surveyed 30 NFL executives/GMs and asked who were the best play callers in Football.
— Maan Aboulhosn (@TheFireMaan) September 21, 2025
Zac Taylor received NO VOTES. (Zero) pic.twitter.com/Pn2wTkvKIL
Not to detract from what Taylor managed to pull off with Browning in 2023, when he completed 70.4% of his passes and posted a 4-3 record as a starter. And we also can't overlook how Vikings cornerback Isaiah Rodgers had a literal day for the ages, with an 87-yard pick-six and a 66-yard fumble scoop-and-score.
Those unbelievably bizarre occurrences aside, Taylor didn't bring enough new wrinkles to the game plan in Week 3 to quell any concerns that he's the long-term answer at head coach.
The Bengals don't have many more years to burn of Burrow's prime, particularly with his injury history. Just about any head coach worth his salt would do unspeakable things to coach the likes of Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins on offense.
It'd be uncharacteristic for Cincinnati's brain trust to shell out top-of-market money for a big-name head coach. Not holding my breath on that happening.
Although we can all still allow Taylor some time to recover, and try not to overreact to one awful result, the Bengals had better be considering alternatives for when Burrow comes back. Because Sunday was just about as shameful as it gets.