Enough is enough.
I am the last person to call for someone to be fired. Working for a living is tough nowadays, and good jobs don’t grow on trees. But sometimes, it just has to happen.
This is one of those times. Zac Taylor’s days as the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals should, by all rights and measures, be over as of now. This latest debacle, a 34-12 shellacking at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers, is the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Before you go feeling sorry for him, understand that Taylor is under contract with the Bengals through the 2026 season at an annual salary of approximately $4.5 million. While the specific payout or buyout details for Taylor have not been publicly disclosed, it is standard for NFL head coaching contracts to have guaranteed money. Thus, Taylor would typically be owed the remainder of his guaranteed salary, which would probably be several million dollars. Firing him would not be the catastrophic event it would be for most of the rest of us.
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Sunday’s game showed us a team that is undisciplined and out of control, and is the perfect example of why it is time to show Taylor the door. Down 7-6 late in the second quarter, Cincinnati basically gifted the Steelers a field goal to end the half. Pittsburgh took advantage of two roughing the passer penalties and a defensive pass interference call to do what it had been unable to do since the first drive of the game – move the football.
Then it was the offense’s turn. In the second half, Pittsburgh turned a Joe Flacco interception into a touchdown and returned a Noah Fant fumble 33 yards for another score to provide the final margin. To say it was an ugly outcome for the Bengals would be an understatement.
After the game, Taylor tried his best to put a positive spin on things.
“We’re working like crazy to make sure that this doesn’t happen,” Taylor said. “It happened today. It’s disappointing. Our option is to come back tomorrow and keep fighting and find a way to get a win.”
The reality is that the season is over. Cincinnati is now three games out of first place in the AFC North Division, and its chances of making the playoffs are gone. If there is a saving grace to all of this, it is that the Bengals should have a high draft pick in the 2026 NFL Draft and need to restock a defense that has proven to be the worst in the league thus far.
Oh, and Joe Burrow will be back and, for a little while at least, healthy. And this is yet another reason why Taylor needs to go. Cincinnati made Burrow the top pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and has not been able to adequately protect him in any season since. Burrow’s injury history reads like an orthopedic surgeon’s dream:
- November 2020: Severe knee injury in the NFL rookie season (torn ACL, MCL, PCL, partial meniscus tear) after being tackled; caused season-ending IR and surgery.
- December 2021: Dislocated pinkie finger during Bengals game, did not miss games.
- February 2022: Grade 2 MCL sprain in the knee during playoffs, including Super Bowl appearance; recovered without missing next season’s games.
- July 2023: Right calf strain during practice; missed no games but reportedly re-aggravated in Week 2.
- November 2023: Torn wrist ligament in throwing hand during Week 11 game, ending his season early.
- September 2025: Grade 1 turf toe injury sustained during a game, feared to be Grade 3, requiring surgery and possibly missing multiple weeks.
Burrow has been one of the most heavily pressured and sacked quarterbacks in the league. In 2021, Burrow was sacked 51 times, third most in the history of the league behind only Randall Cunningham (72 in 1986) and David Carr (76 in 2002). He was sacked 41 times in 2022 and 48 times in 2024, and has the distinction of being the most sacked quarterback in a single postseason, taking 19 total sacks during the 2021 playoffs. The previous record was 14.
The failure to put together a top-notch offensive line, despite having six seasons in which to do so, rests squarely on the shoulders of the head coach.
Bottom line: It’s past time for a change. Zac Taylor needs to be shown the door, and now.
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