The Cincinnati Bengals need to shake things up, and head coach Zac Taylor is officially on hot seat watch.
It'd be uncharacteristic for the Bengals to make some drastic midseason change, in particular when it comes to the firing of a coach. That said, Taylor had better take some extraordinary measures to turn this leaking ship around, or else he might get the pink slip sooner than expected.
One no-brainer way to alter the course of the season would be for Taylor to cede play-calling duties. Sounds like that's off the table as of now based on what Taylor said Monday in the wake of a 37-24 loss to the Detroit Lions that was nowhere near that close — and starred a dynamic play-caller on the opposing sideline.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor won't give up play-calling duties despite offensive offense
Taylor at least has some self-awareness about how unacceptable the results are, and that everyone is looking to him as the primary culprit. Check out what he had to say at the podium when pressed about giving up final say on the call sheet.
The key excerpt to me from this monologue was what Taylor said about how much he leans on offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher and the rest of his staff for input on calling plays during games.
"I rely on them as much as I think any play-caller in the league [relies] on anybody else. So I feel very comfortable. It's a fair question. We scored three points in three games in the first half. I totally understand that, but right now, that's going to remain the same."
Going from Joe Burrow to Jake Browning at quarterback is looking like a far more cataclysmic downgrade than it did two seasons ago. When Browning balled out in 2023, Taylor looked like a genius. Heck, he called the shots for Burrow's MVP-caliber 2024 campaign, too!
So what on Earth has happened? Is it really as simple as trading for a superior QB? Has Browning fallen that far, that fast? Appears to be the case.
Unfortunately for Taylor, acquiring another quarterback is more in the hands of front office and ownership than his own. He also made it clear in last week's lead up to game day that he had "unwavering" confidence in Browning to win games this season.
Whether the Bengals roll with a recent QB acquisition in Mike White, Brett Rypien, or somebody outside the building, it sounded on Monday like Taylor was ready to move off Browning right away (via The Athletic's Paul Dehner Jr.), saying when asked about a potential change at the position, "We’ll see where it goes. Like all personnel decisions, we have to evaluate it."
Doesn't sound like Browning is for long. His starting career as we know it is probably over. What that means for Cincinnati's 2025 season is anybody's guess, but with the way the offense is executing while Taylor dials up the plays, it looks like nobody could operate that system well.
I say either Taylor stops getting so much input — "too many cooks in the kitchen" hypothesis — or he just hands the play-calling reins to somebody else. Whatever the process is now ain't working at all.
And while I empathize with Taylor in the sense that he probably wants to go down (if he does get canned) on his terms, it'd behoove him to consider a fundamental change.
Whatever he does, Taylor's latest words only fuel the doubters who think he's in over his head. And at the same time, marks a stubborn move that probably hurts the team. And at the same time, only loads more pressure on himself, setting a precedent for weekly speculation on the play-calling matter.
Sounds like a no-win scenario any way you slice it; none of it ending well for this year's Cincinnati Bengals.