Cincinnati Bengals Offseason Preview

Nobody was expecting much from Cincinnati this year, but did they really expect to have the worst start in franchise history and ultimately finish with their joint worst record ever? It is likely that most negative Bengals fans expected more in 2020, and the quicker the front office and head coach move on the better. Mike Brown had a chance to see what Zac Taylor could do this year and now has to go and get players to help his coach. Brown has plenty of opportunity this off season with the number one draft pick, numerous other draft picks and a big wad of capital in terms of cap space. Since Mike Brown’s tenure as GM began in 1991, the Bengals have struggled massively on the field and it will require them having a good offseason if they want to get back into contention quickly. The Bengals under Brown have numerous records, no good ones, but several bad ones. They are the only team with three nine or more game losing streaks, they hold six of the 25 0-6 starts, and 4 of the 13 0-8 starts in NFL history. They have gone winless in October nine different times in this tenure.

In his tenure the only head coach with a winning record is Marvin Lewis and even then they couldn’t get a playoff win, despite the seven attempts. 2009 saw Brown was ranked as the second worst NFL Owner and this has not gotten any better with time. In 2015, he was voted as the 9th worst owner in sports. No matter what happens this offseason, unless they have a change in thought process at the top of the organisation, it is going to be a tough challenge developing this team into a perennial Super Bowl contender.

The Bengals, having not won a playoff game under Lewis, decided that it was time to change their head coach in February 2019, replacing Lewis with Zac Taylor. In 2012, Taylor was appointed as the Miami Dolphins quarterback coach and did not exactly perform well. They fired the previous offensive coordinator and promoted Taylor. During his five game spell they went 2-3, an egress from their previous performances, averaging just 17 points per game. What Taylor did achieve in Miami was to develop Ryan Tannehill, as he became only the second Miami QB with multiple 3000 yard seasons. With that first overall draft pick, Taylor has the chance to get his hands on another QB he can help to develop, and hopefully get the Bengals back to finishing with a winning season. This season will be huge for Taylor. If they do take Burrow and they see any sign of major struggles from the man who lit up college football, then Taylor could be seeking new employment in 2021.