The Cincinnati Bengals fell to 4-9 on the season with their loss to the Buffalo Bills yesterday. It was another game where the Bengals scored at least 33 points and still lost, and it’s finally time for them to take a hard look at their coaching staff and whether they can win with it moving forward.
The Bengals must move on from this coaching staff if they want to give Joe Burrow and company the best chance at winning a Super Bowl.
Should The Bengals Fire Their Coaching Staff?
Zac Taylor’s career in Cincinnati began with a 2-14 record and the first pick to select Joe Burrow. An injury in Burrow’s rookie season contributed to the Bengals’ 4-12 record and ultimately led to the selection of Ja’Marr Chase. The following two years were what Bengals fans expected from Burrow and Taylor. They went to the Super Bowl in Burrow’s second season and made the AFC Championship Game the following season.
However, since then, everything has gone downhill. Two major injuries for Burrow kept the Bengals out of the playoffs in 2023 and this season. Burrow was healthy for the 2024 season, but the Bengals could only manage a 9-8 record and missed the playoffs.
Now, the injuries to Burrow have been a significant part of the story in Cincinnati, but Taylor’s inability to win without Burrow stands out in a big way. Taylor is just 9-28 when Burrow isn’t playing. It’s hard for any team to win without its starting quarterback, but you have to do better than 9-28.
There are several areas Taylor needs to improve before he can be considered a legitimate head coach. His offensive scheme makes the game harder for the offense. His play-calling is baffling at times. He doesn’t seem to hold his players accountable in any way, as seen by the defense reportedly laughing in the locker room after a significant loss. He has run his course in Cincinnati, and it’s just time to part ways.
As for the coordinators, it’s easy to see that Al Golden isn’t working out as the defensive coordinator. The Bengals’ defense has been one of the worst in NFL history for most of this season. Looking at PFSN’s Defensive Impact Scores, the Bengals are the worst in the NFL this season with a score of 59.4, and that is the 825th out of 830 scored for defenses since 2000.
On top of that, Golden routinely makes head-scratching defensive calls in the most significant moments. We saw this week in the game-ending 3rd-and-15 scramble by Josh Allen, where he was in man coverage with no spy on him. It’s just not working.
On the offensive side, I don’t have any real major criticisms of Dan Pitcher. He doesn’t get to call plays, but the offense has generally played well this year. However, he will likely go as well, because the new head coach will want to pick his own offensive coordinator, and that will probably be someone with whom he has a connection. If they kept Pitcher, you wouldn’t hear a lot of complaints here.
The Bengals coaches just haven’t done what we need them to do with a team as talented on offense as the Bengals are. Golden’s defense is worse than the one last year that led to Lou Anarumo’s firing. Golden was also a hire that Taylor made and vouched for. It can’t be ignored that Taylor brought him in. It’s time for significant changes in Cincinnati, and they start with the coaching staff.
