Zac Taylor was named the 10th head coach in Bengals history on Feb. 4, 2019. The 2023 season is his fifth in the position after a '22 campaign in which he led the team to a second consecutive AFC North Division title and a repeat appearance in the AFC Championship.
Through four seasons in Cincinnati, Taylor holds marks of 28-36-1 in regular season and 5-2 in postseason. Under Taylor's leadership in 2022, the Bengals tied a team record for regular-season wins (12) and consecutive wins (eight) to earn the No. 3 seed in the AFC Playoffs, after beginning the year with a 4-4 record. In defeating Baltimore in the Wild Card Playoff and Buffalo in the Divisional Playoff, Taylor became one of just 13 head coaches in NFL history who have won five of their first six career postseason games. He once again oversaw a dynamic offense that ranked in the top 10 leaguewide in scoring (seventh, 26.1 points per game), total yards (eighth, 360.5 per game), and passing yards (fifth, 265.0). In Taylor's offense, QB Joe Burrow further established himself among the NFL's elite signal callers and set single-season team records for completions (414) and passing TDs (35), while earning his first career Pro Bowl selection. Taylor also worked with a talented pass-catching group that battled injuries throughout the season, but still managed to boast a pair of 1000-yard receivers in WRs Ja'Marr Chase (1046) and Tee Higgins (1029). Cincinnati's offensive line featured four new starters, but rapidly improved as the year progressed and allowed no more than two sacks in each of the team's final eight regular-season games.
The Bengals also had one of the NFL's most complete defenses, holding opposing QBs to a league-low 58.9 completion percentage while also ranking sixth in points allowed (20.1 per game) and seventh in rushing yards allowed (106.6).
In 2021, Taylor led Cincinnati to its first AFC North Division championship since '15, before winning three postseason games to claim an AFC title and a berth in Super Bowl LVI. Burrow, playing his first full NFL season, enjoyed a breakout year in which he led the NFL in completion percentage (70.4) and set team records for passing yardage (4611) and passer rating (108.3) en route to being named the AP Comeback Player of the Year. Taylor also oversaw the rapid rise of Chase, who recorded the most receiving yards by a rookie in the Super Bowl era (1455) and won AP Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. The Bengals boasted a balanced offense with a strong rushing attack. HB Joe Mixon finishing third in the league in rushing yards (1205) and fourth in rushing TDs (13). Defensively, the Bengals showed marked improvement from 2020 to '21, jumping up the league rankings in rushing yards allowed (29th to fifth), total yards allowed (26th to 18th) and points allowed (22nd to 17th).
In the postseason, Taylor led the Bengals to their first playoff win in 31 years in a Wild Card victory over Las Vegas. Cincinnati then went on the road to defeat the AFC's top two seeds, Tennessee and Kansas City, to earn the franchise's first trip to the Super Bowl since the 1988 season.
In 2020, Taylor helped transition Burrow, the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft, to the pros, despite the absence of an in-person offseason program due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Burrow had one of the most productive starts to a career by a QB in NFL history before a knee injury ended his season after 10 games. Still, his 264 completions were the most ever by an NFL QB through their first 10 career games, while his 404 pass attempts were second and his 2688 passing yards were fifth. Defensively, Taylor oversaw the onboarding of seven new starters, and helped Cincinnati hold opposing passers to just a 62.8 completion percentage (sixth-lowest in the NFL).
In 2019, his first season as head coach, Taylor headed off a wave of early season injuries to lead Cincinnati to second-half turnarounds on both offense and defense. Offensively, the Bengals' per-game rushing average jumped 70.6 yards from the first half of the season (59.5) to the second (130.1), while they allowed 10 fewer sacks (29 to 19). Defensively, Cincinnati notched 11 more sacks in the second half of the season compared to the first, and allowed 84.1 fewer yards per game.
Taylor came to Cincinnati after two seasons (2017-18) with the L.A. Rams, where he served as assistant wide receivers coach in '17 and quarterbacks coach in '18. In 2018, he helped guide QB Jared Goff to career highs in every major passing category. Goff ranked fourth in the NFL in passing yards and eighth in passer rating. The Rams' QB play was a key component to their offense, which finished the regular season ranked second in the NFL in total net yards (421.1 per game), fifth in net passing yards (281.7) and second in scoring (32.9). Los Angeles won the NFC West with a 13-3 regular-season record and advanced to Super Bowl LIII.
In 2017, Taylor helped oversee an emerging Rams passing offense that ranked 10th in the NFL in passing yards per game (239.4). He worked with a young receiving corps headed by rookie Cooper Kupp, who finished the season with 62 catches for a team-high 869 receiving yards.
Prior to his time with the Rams, Taylor had a one-year stint in the college ranks, serving as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Cincinnati in 2016. Taylor served under head coach Tommy Tuberville at UC.
Taylor broke into NFL coaching in 2012 with the Miami Dolphins as assistant quarterbacks coach. He was elevated to quarterbacks coach from 2013-15, and spent the final five games of '15 as the Dolphins' interim offensive coordinator and primary play-caller, after the team made coaching staff changes. During his time in Miami, Taylor was instrumental in the development of QB Ryan Tannehill, the team's first-round draft pick in 2012.
Taylor's coaching career began at Texas A&M University, where he served as offensive graduate assistant and tight ends coach under head coach Mike Sherman from 2008-11. The Aggies played in three bowl games during Taylor's time in College Station.
As a player, Taylor began his college career at Wake Forest (2002-03) before transferring to Butler County Community College in Kansas ('04) and then playing his final two seasons ('05-06) at the University of Nebraska. Taylor had a decorated career with the Cornhuskers, setting numerous school records and passing for 5850 yards and 45 TDs. In his 2006 senior season, he was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year after passing for 3197 total yards and leading the Cornhuskers to a 9-3 record, an appearance in the Big 12 Championship Game and a berth in the Cotton Bowl. He was inducted into the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame in 2017.
Taylor joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a college free agent in 2007, but was waived prior to the start of training camp and never saw NFL action. Later that year, he joined the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League, where he spent one season (did not play).
His father, Sherwood, was a defensive back and captain at the University of Oklahoma, playing under Sooners head coach Barry Switzer from 1976-79. Sherwood Taylor later served as an assistant coach at Oklahoma and Kansas State University. Taylor's younger brother, Press, played quarterback at Marshall University and currently is the offensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Taylor was born in Norman, Okla., on May 10, 1983. After attending Norman High School, he earned a bachelor's degree in communication studies from the University of Nebraska in 2006. He and his wife, Sarah, have four children — Brooks, Luke, Emma Claire and Milly. Sarah Taylor is the daughter of former Green Bay Packers and Texas A&M head coach Mike Sherman.
Playing and coaching history: 2002-03—Played QB at Wake Forest. 2004—Played QB at Butler County (Kan.) Community College. 2005-06—Played QB at University of Nebraska. 2007—Signed as college free agent with Tampa Bay Buccaneers (released prior to training camp); Was a QB with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL (did not play). 2008-11—Graduate assistant/assistant coach, Texas A&M. 2012-15—Quarterbacks coach, Miami Dolphins. 2016—Offensive coordinator/QBs coach, University of Cincinnati. 2017—Assistant wide receivers coach, L.A. Rams. 2018—QBs coach, L.A. Rams. 2019-present—Head coach, Cincinnati Bengals.
