Zac Taylor had a lot to say at his year-end presser.
Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor has a gargantuan task in front of him this offseason in free agency and with the first pick in the 2020 NFL draft.
While it sounds like things won’t kick into high gear until after the first of the year, Taylor addressed the media early this week and hit on some big topics.
When it comes to the draft, he admitted it’s nice to have the first pick and the freedom to choose from an entire class:
“It’s not just hoping that Jonah Williams is going to be there (when you pick) and hoping nobody takes him before you. Now, we get to make that selection. There’s a lot that goes into that process, as we research these guys and try to reach a conclusion on who we want to take, but we have plenty of time for that.”
Naturally, the conversation turned to LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, the obvious favorite for the top pick.
Taylor listed out some of the traits he looks for in a quarterback:
“Leadership. A guy that leads by example. Somebody that outworks all of this teammates and elevates their level of play. There’s no question that there’s the accuracy that plays into it, and the timing and anticipation and all those things that come with it. No. 1, you want a guy that will lead by example and show others the way and raise the level of their teammates.”
Free agency could also end up being an interesting part of the equation given some of the departures set to happen and the obvious areas of need.
On free agency and if he and the front office will be on the same page:
“We’ve been on the same page every step of the way. Again, those are conversations we’ll have this week to make sure we’re all heading in the same direction — which I know that we are — just with how we see the personnel going forward. Again, that’s something that we’ll take care of now that the season is over with.”
Taylor also interestingly noted leaderhip can come from free agents too, not just homegrown talent. Whether the Bengals go outside the organization in a significant manner remains to be seen, but there’s more hope for that this year than in the past given the presence of a new staff.
The Bengals are on the clock and the Joe Burrow questions have started.
Let the Joe Burrow questions begin.
Monday was the season-ending presser and media meet for the Cincinnati Bengals. There, no topic seemed to command attention like the one centered on LSU quarterback Joe Burrow.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor, whose team clutches the first pick in the 2020 draft, told the media it’s too early to confirm Burrow will be the pick because the team hasn’t watched players yet, per the team’s official website.
Interestingly, star wideout A.J.Green also fielded a question on Burrow.
“He’s a college player,” Green said, according to Joe Kay of the Associated Press. “Everybody can say he’s going to be the guy and then you get to the NFL and it’s a whole different game. You’ve got to re-calibrate yourself. I don’t care how good you are in college, there’s a reset button when you get to the NFL. But he’s a winner for a reason.”
Good perspective from Green, though whether he ends up catching passes from Burrow perhaps hinges moreso on whether he gets an extension than it does the team taking the LSU quarterback.
While it might be “early” for the Bengals from the sense the draft process needs to unfold, Burrow is the likeliest pick by a long shot — just don’t expect anyone to say so anytime soon.
Will the Bengals coach make changes this offseason?
If Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor has ideas in mind when it comes to altering his coaching staff this offseason, he isn’t making it known just yet.
Taylor got asked about changes to his coaching staff ahead of his team’s season-ending game against the Cleveland Browns and kept his answer short and sweet:
“Those are things we’ll talk about after the season.”
While the answer isn’t surprising, there is plenty of reason for Taylor to find himself confronted with it.
Taylor and his staff had to learn on the fly and things weren’t assembled fully until late in the process. But nobody expected the raw staff to put together the worst start in franchise history and have just one win with a single game remaining on the schedule.
The second half of the season served as an evaluation period for the coaching staff as much as it did for the players. The question now is whether coaches like Jim Turner and positional coaches along the defense will get another chance next year after rebounding from poor starts. How injuries play a role in this judgment is hard to say, too.
From the posturing of the franchise right now, Taylor himself isn’t going anywhere despite the poor record. But the same can’t be said for his staff, which could see some changes over the course of the offseason.
The Bengals coach knows the team needed to commit to the run more.
There were always going to be growing pains for this Cincinnati Bengals coaching staff.
The Bengals brought on a first-time coach in Zac Taylor and he turned right around and hired a largely inexperienced staff. It was clear from the jump things would take time.
One of those things was understanding the value of the running game, which he now freely admits, as he did with Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson:
I thought it was significant that you stuck with the run game in overtime despite how they were playing it.
We’ve learned our lessons. You can’t just abandon it. It’s happened early in the year. Those are things we learned from.
Now plenty might argue the ground game isn’t so important. But it varies by team and in Cincinnati’s case, abandoning the run meant cutting out the team’s best offensive weapon — Joe Mixon.
Last year’s leading rusher in the AFC, who happens to have plenty of skill through the air, too, didn’t carry the ball more than 15 times in seven of his first 10 appearances this year. He has in five consecutive games now and is 25 yards removed from 1,000 yards.
This isn’t advocating for a pitch count. But it was painfully clear the coaches were going away from Mixon at inopportune times often and it played a part in the miserable start.
Alongside some subtle changes in approach to blocking itself, it should at least be comforting to hear the coaching staff has learned from the misguided approach here.
With this misuse potentially in the rearview, the next impasse with Mixon could be even more problematic — he’s going to need an extension soon.
Coaching in the NFL is rough. It isn’t easy to try and turn teams around. A look at how first- and second-year coaches have done.
Fourteen NFL head coaches are either finishing their first or second year in the current position. Only one, Green Bay’s Matt LaFleur, is definitely postseason bound after Week 17 of the 2019 regular season. Ranking the jobs the 14 have done so far.
14. Pat Shurmur
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Ben McAdoo was 13-15 in slightly less than two seasons as coach of the New York Giants. Pat Shurmur has followed and gone 9-22 heading into Week 17. He’s had a second overall pick (Saquon Barkley), a sixth overall pick (Daniel Jones) and two other first-rounders. The results do not breed confidence for Shurmur being around in 2020.
On the heels of a wild weekend that transformed the NFL playoff picture, Touchdown Wire unveils its weekly NFL Power Rankings.
Heading into Week 17, we already know the Baltimore Ravens are the best team in the league and the Cincinnati Bengals are the worst.
In Week 16, we found out two positive certainties for the Ravens and Bengals. First, by guaranteeing the league’s worst record, the Bengals clinched the No. 1 spot in the 2020 NFL draft.
At least at the moment, it appears likely they’ll use it on Heisman Trophy winner and LSU quarterback Joe Burrow. That’s the silver lining in Cincinnati’s dismal season.
Baltimore earned a gift with its great season. At 13-2, the Ravens clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs, meaning they have a bye and hold home-field advantage throughout the postseason.
Lots of other scenarios were clinched in Week 16. But many more, including a number of playoff seeds, won’t be known until after Week 17.
We touch on that and more in this week’s Touchdown Wire NFL Power Rankings.
32. Cincinnati Bengals
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(1-14. Last week: 32)
Finally, there’s something to celebrate in Cincinnati. It took an overtime loss to Miami, but the Bengals officially clinched the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft. That almost certainly will be used on a quarterback, and most draft experts currently believe LSU’s Joe Burrow is the top prospect. While that seems like a certainty, the status of first-year head coach Zac Taylor isn’t a given. Bengals owner Mike Brown has been notoriously patient and frugal in the past, but a one- or two-win season may not be enough for Taylor to survive. Besides, there is plenty of room to question Taylor’s decision to go back to veteran quarterback Andy Dalton after briefly benching him in favor of rookie Ryan Finley. Yeah, Dalton threw four touchdown passes Sunday, but it’s clear he’s got no future with the Bengals. Apparently, Finley doesn’t either. This looks like a team that already has settled on Burrow.
31. Washington Redskins
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(3-12. Last week: 31)
There hasn’t been much for Washington fans to cheer for this season, especially after Sunday’s overtime loss to the New York Giants dropped the Redskins into sole possession of last place in the NFC East. But there is one bright spot: the play of rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins. Coming off the best game of his career, Haskins continued to show progress by completing 12 of 15 passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns before leaving with an ankle injury. That means whoever is coaching the Redskins next year might already have his quarterback. The Redskins are going to have a premium draft pick and might decide on Ohio State defensive end Chase Young, who is more of a sure thing than any of the quarterbacks who will be available.
30. Detroit Lions
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(3-11-1. Last week: 29)
Things continued to get worse for Detroit with a 27-17 loss to Denver. That was to be expected because the Lions are down to third-string quarterback David Blough, who totaled just 117 passing yards and took four sacks against the Broncos. This season has long been over for the Lions. But the real story here is about next season. Ownership came out last week and firmly said that coach Matt Patricia will be back for a third year and general manager Bob Quinn also will return. That’s somewhat surprising since Patricia’s tenure has been a disaster, and there haven’t been many signs of progress. But I can see the case for giving Patricia another year. He deserves a shot to see what he can do with quarterback Matthew Stafford healthy all season. If Patricia can’t win with Stafford, then it will be time to move on.
29. Jacksonville Jaguars
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(5-10. Last week: 27)
The Jaguars made news last week by firing executive vice president Tom Coughlin. Some assume that means coach Doug Marrone and general manager Dave Caldwell are safe for next season, but that’s not necessarily the case. Marrone has lost 21 of 31 games since taking the Jaguars to the AFC Championship Game after the 2017 season. Coughlin’s firing was about more than the team’s record. It was a reaction by owner Shad Kahn after the NFL Players Association issued a warning to players about signing with the Jaguars due to a high number of grievances against the organization. Those issues were a poor reflection on Coughlin. But the team’s poor record is a reflection on Marrone and Caldwell. Kahn might be better off cleaning house and starting over again.
28. Miami Dolphins
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(4-11. Last week: 30)
Remember back early in the season when everyone thought the Dolphins were purposely losing to acquire better draft picks? At first, it seemed to be true, but they were just good enough to win their way out of the top pick — and it was fitting that their overtime win against Cincinnati helped the Bengals clinch the No. 1 pick. Miami stuck with veteran quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick over second-year pro Josh Rosen most of the season. That was pointless, because Fitzpatrick is no long-term answer for a team that needs a major rebuild. By missing out on the No. 1 pick, the Dolphins apparently will miss out on consensus No. 1 quarterback prospect Joe Burrow. They probably still will draft a quarterback. Instead of Burrow, it likely will be Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa or Oregon’s Justin Herbert.
27. New York Giants
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(4-11. Last week: 28)
Sure, the Giants are 4-11, and Sunday’s victory against a bad Washington team came in overtime. But I’m going to go way out on a limb and declare the Giants the favorite to win the NFC East in 2020. Seriously. Why? The Giants have the brightest future of the bunch. You could see Sunday that the Giants are set at quarterback and running back for the long term. Rookie quarterback Daniel Jones returned from injury and threw for 352 yards and five touchdowns. Second-year running back Saquon Barkley ran for 189 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 90 yards and another touchdown. Jones and Barkley could be superstars. Sure, there’s plenty of work to be done on the defense, at receiver and on the offensive line. But Jones and Barkley give the Giants hope and something to build around. Their presence and promise probably is enough to keep coach Pat Shurmur employed.
26. Carolina Panthers
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(5-10. Last week: 25)
Perhaps the most insightful NFL quote of the week came from veteran Carolina tight end Greg Olsen, who has a bright future in broadcasting. After an embarrassing loss to Indianapolis, Olsen put Carolina’s situation into perfect context.
“It’s a really tough way to operate,” Olsen said. “Players are underperforming. It’s right now a very collective failure, organizationally a failure.”
The Panthers might be in the most disarray they’ve been in since coach George Seifert’s final year, a 1-15 season in 2001. Interim coach Perry Fewell hasn’t come close to winning a game since taking over when Ron Rivera was fired. It’s become obvious that Fewell will not get the permanent job. Owner David Tepper has to go out and find the right guy. If general manager Marty Hurney sticks around and has any input, his track record suggest he’ll favor a rising coordinator and not a former head coach or a college coach.
25. Los Angeles Chargers
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(5-10. Last week: 23)
The Chargers lost to the Raiders on Sunday, but the big story here came in the postgame. Veteran quarterback Philip Rivers told reporters he wants to continue playing. Rivers is 38 and in the final year of his contract.
“I’m capable enough physically and mentally, there’s no question,” Rivers said. “Yes, I do want to play football. I do, and that’s how I feel deep down as I stand here.”
But the bigger question is do the Chargers want Rivers back? Despite all he’s done for the franchise through the years, Rivers has endured a bad season. His 18 interceptions rank second in the NFL to Jameis Winston’s 28. The Chargers have been one of the league’s most disappointing teams and haven’t developed much of a fan base in Los Angeles. They’ll be moving into a new stadium next year, and it might be time for an infusion of excitement at quarterback, whether through the draft or via free agency.
Zac Taylor had some interesting comments after the loss to the Patriots.
Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor didn’t mince words when addressing Andy Dalton’s four-interception game during the loss to the New England Patriots.
In fact, Taylor hit the postgame presser noting his wideouts simply got beat while his quarterback took risks:
“Three of them were against man-to-man coverage, one-on-ones. We got bullied… we did. Guys could go compete, knock the ball down, go get a one-on-one. I think Gilmore (Patriots CB Stephon Gilmore) had what, two of them? Ok. So their guys went and competed. They have a tough secondary…The quarterback’s going take all of the blame for it, when in reality he taking some one-on-one opportunities that we had to take to be in that game, and go make some plays. You’re counting on some guys to get some separation and go compete, and they got the better of us on a lot of those.”
It’s an interesting point from Taylor. On one hand, the quarterback is always going to get the brunt of the blame. On the other, some of the throws weren’t the best, target-wise.
And like it or not, Tyler Boyd answered questions about his one-on-ones after the game and didn’t hold back either, especially on the misplaced ball that went for a pick-six:
“Yeah, he (had) outside leverage. He had perfect leverage on an out-route. We were running an out-route to the field with man coverage — (having) outside leverage, think it’s going to be a pick?”
Agree to disagree, right? The Bengals have won a single game and remain in the hunt for the top overall pick in 2020. Quarterback seems to be the way of things.
At this point, the Bengals clearly want Dalton being aggressive in the pursuit of wins. He is, though only one win has happened to date since his re-entry as starter.
Zac Taylor isn’t a fan of the Patriots taping discussion.
Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor and members of the staff played an instrumental role in the latest controversy surrounding the New England Patriots, dubbed Spygate 2.0.
The NFL is currently investigating the Patriots for the eight minutes of b-roll footage the team shot of Cincinnati’s sideline last weekend.
In the interim, Taylor has fielded endless questions on the matter, culminating in Thursday’s funny series of questions, per Dave Green of NBC Sports Boston:
Q: What are your general thoughts on the videotaping situation with the Patriots? ZT: I have no comment on that.
Q: Some reports have said that you are livid about the situation. Is that true? ZT: I have no comment on that.
Q: How much do you and your coaching staff use hand signals during games?
ZT: I think, like any team, we communicate visually and verbally, depending on the environment we’re in.
Q: Do you believe the Patriots’ explanation for this situation? ZT: I don’t have any comment on any of that stuff.
Q: Has anyone from the Patriots organization reached out to you to clear the air? ZT: I don’t have any comment on any of that.
Q: Why do you believe it’s in your best interest not to have any comment at any point on this ongoing incident that’s affected your team?
ZT: Because this is a tough opponent right now, and we’re devoting all of our time to making sure we’re prepared. And so that’s where all of our focus has been on.
Q: Your time now is spent with us, though. ZT: Yeah, it is. And I have no comment.
Q: Do you regret anything about how this all transpired? ZT: No.
Considering Taylor and the Bengals were reportedly “livid” about the whole ordeal, per Boston Globe’s Ben Volin, this is a rather tame set of responses from the first-year head coach.
Notably though, Taylor doesn’t regret a thing. Commentary once the NFL concludes its investigation should prove even more interesting.
“It’s hard for me to say. We continue to have daily conversations about it, and he’s not ready to practice today. He wants to play this year, so we want to continue to give him that opportunity and leave that open.”
Given how long Green has missed, hindsight says the Bengals should’ve slapped him on injured reserve or otherwise after his injury on the first day of training camp.
Now? The Bengals still don’t sound ready to shift him to a reserve list, freeing up a spot. At this point, giving him a chance to get on the field makes sense, as the team would like to win more than a single game this season and Green himself would probably like to show teams he can still go before he heads to free agency this offseason.
That trip to free agency looms ever closer, as Green has three games left to get back on the field.
