After missing the playoffs for the second consecutive season – and the first time with a healthy Joe Burrow – the Cincinnati Bengals made a few changes. In all, the team moved on from its defensive coordinator along with its offensive line, defensive line, and linebackers coaches. It was obvious that changes needed to be made despite the “dead cat bounce” of a five-game winning streak to end the season. The damage of an atrocious start and seven one-score losses was too much. If the Bengals won just one of those one-score games, they would have made the playoffs. However, if ifs and buts were candies and nuts, we’d all have a Merry Christmas. The team has only itself to blame.
With all of the coaching changes, the one constant was head coach Zac Taylor. The team reaffirmed its commitment to its coach after his sixth season at the helm. Regardless of a fan’s personal opinion on Taylor’s job security, he’s back.
However, the onus will be on Taylor to nail the coaching hires. The Super Bowl window is apparently narrower than it has been after some draft and free agency misses on defense. The Bengals wasted a potential MVP season from Burrow and a Triple Crown season from Ja’Marr Chase. That can’t happen again.
Unfortunately, it seems the message has not been delivered and the “same old Bengals” are back.
The Cincinnati Bengals New Hires Scream “Same Old Bengals”
Familiarity Breeds Contentment
Normally, the saying is that familiarity breeds contempt. In Cincinnati, familiarity is better than anything.
To start, the first hires the team made were Scott Peters and Michael McCarthy to fix the offensive line issues. The Peters hire has been praised by all kinds of Bengals voices around the internet. There is still a good chance that Peters will be better than Jim Turner and Frank Pollack, the two previous positional coaches in the Taylor era. His coaching fit is better suited to the Bengals’ offense than Pollack, for example. However, there is the fact that Peters comes to Cincinnati with one year of offensive line coaching.
His calling card for Taylor was his proximity to Bill Callahan. While at Nebraska, Callahan was Taylor’s head coach. After his time in Nebraska ended, Callahan bounced around the NFL as the offensive line coach for the New York Jets, Washington Commanders, Cleveland Browns, and now the Tennessee Titans. Proximity to Callahan is important to the Bengals, evidently.
Peters and Callahan’s paths crossed while the two were in Cleveland as Peters served as the assistant offensive line coach from 2020 through 2023. The Browns’ offensive line was among the best in the NFL over that stretch and it was obvious that Brian Callahan was going to bring his father along with him to Nashville.
In one season in New England, Peters’ offensive line struggled, hence why the Patriots sacrificed Jacoby Brissett for the first six games instead of letting Drake Maye get shellacked. In total, it wasn’t good.
The Patriots had the 31st ranked pass blocking offensive line and 32nd ranked run blocking offensive line in 2024, per PFF.
They also had the 30th ranked running game by EPA/play.
But at least we can look forward to this. https://t.co/AXAFnEQGg3 pic.twitter.com/CJQhWJgdFy
— Gridiron Grading (@GridironGrading) January 20, 2025
The important caveat is that the Patriots offensive line was wholly untalented. At the same time, the Bengals’ offensive line was hurt, bad, good, bad, hurt/rookie, so it’s not like they have much room to talk.
Peters may be the right hire. He is innovative, young, and respected. At the same time, the Bengals are entrusting the franchise to a coach with little experience. And, in that one season, New England struggled on the offensive line.
Silence is Golden
From the time Lou Anarumo was relieved of his duties as defensive coordinator, the Bengals have been suspiciously quiet. The team interviewed Patrick Graham and DeMarcus Covington in the weeks following Anaurmo’s firing but there was very little tangible smoke surrounding what was about to happen.
Then, the Bengals hired Notre Dame defensive coordinator and old friend, Al Golden. Golden served as the Bengals’ linebackers coach in 2020 and 2021 before taking off for South Bend. In his first year, the Fighting Irish were 39th in scoring defense, 23rd in passing, 37th in rushing, and 22nd in total defense. Golden improved that defense to finish the 2024 season with the fourth-best scoring, fourth-best passing, 49th-best rushing, and 11th-best total defense. Of course, those figures ended up a tad bloated after struggling against Ohio State in the College Football Playoff National Championship.
Sources: The Bengals are waiting for the dust to clear on Notre Dame’s season, but plan is to bring Irish DC Al Golden in for an interview in the next 48 hours and—if everything goes to plan—hire him as their next defensive coordinator.
So they’ll get their top choice.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) January 21, 2025
Is Golden a good defensive coordinator? Yes.
Does it feel like the Bengals locked in on Golden from the start and didn’t bother shooting for the best candidates out there? Also yes.
There are a few questions that must be answered, of course. The biggest is did they target Golden because he likely isn’t going to be the target of head coaching searches next year? If the answer is yes, they’ve already done a disservice to the franchise.
Taylor is coaching for his life. No matter how anyone spins the idea that the Super Bowl loss bought Taylor a decade of leeway, another missed playoff with a healthy Burrow would be inexcusable. So, the question remains, did they not bother with the Robert Salehs or Dennis Allens of the world because those two could earn a head coaching job in 2026? If so, that’s disappointing.
Who cares if the new defensive coordinator hire could leave after 2025; that means you hired the best coach for the job! If the Bengals miss the playoffs again and Taylor is let go, was it worth it for the team or for Golden?
Golden, like Peters, could very well end up as the correct choice and will lead the Bengals back to the playoffs. However, on the surface, it really feels like the team took the easiest route.
Main Image: Kareem Elgazzar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
