Zac Taylor's Joe Burrow decision proves why Bengals need radical change

Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor is stubbornly forging ahead in his quest to win as many games as possible. No regard for the potential consequences for Joe Burrow, nor the team's long-term future.

Sounds about right, doesn't it? Taylor is smart enough to know the score. The Bengals got blanked 24-0 by the Ravens in Week 15, dropping their record to 4-10.

If the team doesn't show some signs of life down the stretch, Taylor could be out of a job. It's not so much the decision he made official on Monday that signals the Bengals' need to move on from him. It's more the principle of the thing.

Zac Taylor confirms Joe Burrow will start Bengals' last 3 games

That's right. A banged-up Burrow who can't possibly be 100% healthy off of turf toe surgery will be under center for Cincinnati's remaining few games of this season, per Taylor's announcement today.

Winning now is a noble mission — but at what cost?

Burrow took another beating on Sunday. It appears to have taken its toll based on how he looked the day after.

Obviously football is a brutal, physical sport. Anyone could be walking with a slight limp or be hurting less than 24 hours after being on the NFL gridiron. When it comes to Joe Burrow, it's just different.

As documented by Mike Petraglia of CLNSCincy.com, Taylor is equal parts accountable and too insulated from the outside noise. He's starting to sound like a man too close to a situation to understand the bigger picture.

"It's 100 percent on me, to be at the record we're at...that starts and ends with me. [...] When I tell you there's a brick wall around me...this year certainly isn't acceptable."

NFL head coaches must block out distractions to a certain degree. How could you function otherwise? At the same time, Taylor is leading with emotion and self-preservation rather than logic and the franchise's overall welfare in mind.

Not that Burrow would readily accept being benched the rest of the way, but at a certain point, there's only so much to be gained. Any vague aspirations to "show there's no quit in this team" by starting Burrow the rest of the way will mean nothing if Cincinnati misses the playoffs for a fourth straight season in 2026.

If Joe Brrr can't get through these final few games intact, or if he aggravates that turf toe injury, or if he suffers a compensatory injury because he's not physically firing on all cylinders, just imagine the disaster that would be. Next season might as well be lost.

Read More: Ex-Bengals RB did not hold back in scathing remarks about the franchise

Commanders aren't making their nightmare season worse by shutting down Jayden Daniels

Right as I was gearing up to write this story, news broke from NFL Media's Ian Rapoport that the Washington Commanders are shutting down Jayden Daniels for their last few games.

Daniels' situation is a little different in that he's not medically cleared from his latest ailment in an injury-riddled season. Nevertheless, the Bengals should've taken a page out of Washington's playbook here.

Washington ran all the way to the NFC Championship Game with a then-rookie Daniels. The front office went all-in on an aging veteran nucleus, and once Daniels got hurt, everything went off the rails.

Head coach Dan Quinn could easily justify pressing Daniels back into duty when he is cleared to get another victory or two. Quinn may not be as on the hot seat as Taylor, but his defense has imploded in 2025, and he'll certainly be under scrutiny. Any little bit of progress would help his case. He's still making the right long game call by refusing to deploy Daniels until Week 1, 2026.

Although he's slight of frame and has durability concerns going forward, Daniels doesn't have near the medical rap sheet that Burrow has. And he's much further into his career.

And again, Burrow is still not 100%. No secret there.

So what the heck is Taylor doing? What are the Bengals doing? What is Burrow doing? What's the grand plan? No one knows!! All decisions with this franchise these days feel reactive, desperate, illogical, or all of the above.

It's cool that Burrow believes in the organization's direction, or at least that's the message he's publicly projecting.

Can't say many of us Who Dey Heads feel the same way.

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