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Is 6-25-1 good enough to put Bengals coach Zac Taylor a third year in office? Yes, he is.
The Bengals have announced that Taylor will return in 2021.
“Our fans wanted a new direction two years ago, and that is what we intended to do by hiring a brilliant and energetic coach at Zac Taylor,” Bengals owner Mike Brown said in a statement released Monday morning. “We remain optimistic about the foundation that Zac is building and look forward to next year giving our fans the winning results that we all want. In Zac’s two years, we added many new starters and collaborators through the draft, invested heavily in free agency and acquired a talented young defender with a bright future.
“This season, we face challenges with injuries in key positions and missed opportunities. I am proud of our football team for fighting hard in adversity. This adversity and hard work will help us next season. We will enter the off-season looking to shore up our weaknesses and expand the strengths of our talented young group. We are not discouraged, but instead, we feel motivated and confident that next year will reap the benefits of the work that has been done so far. We must seize the opportunities ahead of us. Next year we will win our stripes ”.
The Bengals “acquired a talented young defender” because they hit bottom in 2019 with a 2-14 record. They doubled their victories in 2020, but lost quarterback Joe Burrow along the way due to a serious knee injury.
But Bengalis are in the habit of not firing coaches with guaranteed wages in their contracts. That may have saved Taylor, or at least it may have been a factor.
It will be interesting to see if and to what extent personnel changes are made, since Taylor stays. Regardless, Taylor will be back for a third season at the helm of the only AFC North team that failed to make the playoffs in 2020.