In Season Full of Blunders, Zac Taylor Made Correct Decision Ahead of Bengals' Bye Week

CINCINNATI — Zac Taylor made the right decision this week.

He could've wavered. He could've left it open ended. Heck, he could've tried to fire one or more members of his coaching staff.

Instead, the seventh-year head coach made the right call. He backed his guys, didn't make any changes to his staff and is owning the situation.

It's ugly in Cincinnati right now. The Bengals are 3-6. They've lost the last two games in the final two minutes of each contest, despite scoring a combined 80 points (38,42).

“These are good football coaches. They've been successful everywhere they've been," Taylor said. "We all know we've got to play better as a football team. There's been challenges our offense has faced over the course of the season. We've worked through them. We're playing better for it. There's challenges our defense are facing right now. I'm confident that we're going to work through it. We're going to play better football and find a way to win some games.”

Some called for Taylor's firing. Others believe he should've fired defensive coordinator Al Golden.

What would that have done? Would that have helped them improve as a team? Would they suddenly be able to tackle in the open field?

This coaching staff is far from perfect. They need to make changes and start winning games. If they don't, then they won't be here next season.

We know it, Bengals ownership knows thaitt and most importantly, the coaches know it.

Taylor needs to find answers. Golden needs to find answers. The long-time defensive coordinator coordinator didn't just forget how to coach over the past 10 months.

"He's a good coach," one NFL coach said via text message. That coach isn't affiliated with the Bengals and doesn't have dog in the fight.

"Obviously it's ultra painful. It's hard to go through that. You gotta swallow that and get beyond that, because you've got to move on quickly in terms of what we have to fix during the bye week," Golden said when asked about their 47-42 loss to the Bears. "At the end of the day it rests with me. I have to do a better job, there's no doubt about it. I think from a scheme standpoint there's nothing that's not on the table. We have to examine all that."

The Bengals' defense has had chances at getting off the field in key moments. From a 3rd-and-8 against the Packers that would've given Joe Flacco a chance to shock Green Bay to not finding a way on 3rd-and-10 to stop Caleb Williams—this unit needs to be better. They've been arguably the worst defense in team history over the past month.

That has to change if Taylor is going to keep his job. That has to change if Golden is going to keep his job.

There's also no reason to make that move to appease a frustrated fan base.

Taylor and the Bengals haven't gotten much right this season, but sticking with this coaching staff through the bye week is the correct decision.

Sign UP For Our DAILY Newsletter for MORE FREE Coverage of the Cincinnati Bengals Delivered to YOU Directly

For more on the Bengals, subscribe to our YouTube Channel and be sure to check us out on your favorite audio platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio and Amazon.

Make sure you bookmark BengalsTalk.com for the latest Bengals news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more! We're a one-stop shop for all things Cincinnati Bengals!