One day following the Cincinnati Bengals' final game of 2020 season, a 38-3 loss to Baltimore Ravens, head coach Zac Taylor took the podium with no lack of confidence in what he was building in Cincinnati despite having just six wins in his first two years.
"I believe in what we're doing, I think that's the most important thing," Taylor said.
A year later, Taylor's Bengals are AFC North champions and headed to the postseason for the first time since 2015. Quite the difference a year makes.
Taylor's steady belief in the process is what allowed him to keep an optimistic outlook through the struggles. He won two games in 2019 and took over a team in the midst of a roster shakeup. To put into perspective how much the roster has changed under Taylor, only 13 players on the current team were playing for the Bengals before Taylor arrived.
A year later, Taylor and the Bengals selected quarterback Joe Burrow with the No. 1 overall pick and 10 games into his rookie season, Burrow suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Although the hope was Burrow would make a complete recovery, it's hard for anyone to predict if any athlete will be the same after that type of injury, especially Burrow, who is known for his ability to make scramble plays on the move. The Bengals won two games after Burrow's season ended.
Even in the lowest of lows, Taylor and his approach haven't wavered. Just ask defensive end Sam Hubbard who's one of the few players who's been with Taylor from the start.
"Anytime something goes wrong or there’s an issue, it seems like people are calling for Zac’s job or whatever," Hubbard said of Taylor. "He’s done nothing but be a great leader and consistent force in this whole turnaround, and I really love Zac as a coach, and I’m thankful that he’s here."
When the Bengals hired Taylor, he was 35 years old, the second-youngest coach in the NFL. His work with quarterbacks and his offensive mind were among the many reasons Cincinnati had their eyes on Taylor when they began their coaching search.
"We're looking for a young, bright offensive mind," Bengals president Mike Brown said prior to hiring Taylor. "That is where the game is going."
Brown was spot on. The NFL has now morphed into a pass-first league and the amount of points scored per game is at an all-time high. Taylor, a former quarterback at the University of Nebraska, spent six years of his young coaching career working specifically with the quarterback position.
He specializes in working with quarterbacks and, as Brown knew at the time given where former starting quarterback Andy Dalton was at in his career, hiring a coach who could develop a young quarterback would be key.
Burrow and Taylor appear to be the perfect pairing. In his second season in the NFL, Burrow is already smashing franchise records.
He broke the Bengals' record for most passing yards in a single game in Cincinnati's Week 16 win over the Baltimore Ravens. He also broke Dalton's previous record for most touchdown passes (33) thrown in a season against the Chiefs. Burrow has now thrown 34 touchdowns with one game to play.
While Burrow receives a lot of credit for his physical talent and his ability to diagnosis a defense, Taylor's ability to prepare his quarterback during this week and call plays to maximize him deserves praise as well.
Burrow said as much following his dominating performance against the Chiefs on Sunday. He even went further to recall his first meeting with Taylor at the NFL Combine in 2020 before he was drafted and why it sticks with him to this day.
"When I had my first meeting with Zac at the combine, I knew exactly what kind of coach we had, and I knew exactly where I wanted to be," Burrow said. "He’s a great offensive mind and a great leader of men. He does a great job. I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.”
Taylor and the Bengals' offense has evolved into a top-5 scoring offense this season, averaging 27.8 points per game. With Burrow at the helm and the skill players he has around him in wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd and Joe Mixon, Cincinnati's offense is becoming "must-see TV" in many ways.
With the turnaround he's led, Taylor is now the betting favorite to win the NFL's Coach of the Year award given out during the NFL Honors ceremony before the Super Bowl LVI in February. Behind Taylor in the betting odds are Packers' head coach Matt LaFleur, Titans' head coach Mike Vrabel and Patriots' head coach Bill Belichick.
The Bengals look like they can go toe-to-toe with any team in the AFC; who knows what can happen in the postseason. Taylor will certainly be singularly focused on how to get his team ready to play in the playoffs, a place Cincinnati hasn't been in a long time.
And the Bengals have Taylor to thank for that.
"We need to take it one game at a time right now," Taylor said this week. "I think that’s the key. We’ve always had big goals for this team and this franchise, but you’ve got to take care of the task at hand."
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