Zac Taylor Takes Accountability as Bengals Face Harsh Reality of 2025 Season
The Cincinnati Bengals are officially out of the playoff picture, and head coach Zac Taylor isn’t dodging the spotlight. At 4-10, with three games left in a season that’s fallen well short of expectations, Taylor stood at the podium and did what leaders are supposed to do-he owned it.
“This year certainly hasn't been good enough with the record we're at right now,” Taylor said on Dec. 15.
It’s not just coach-speak. Taylor made it clear he’s not pointing fingers.
He knows the buck stops with him, even if the reasons behind the Bengals’ disappointing season stretch far beyond his control. Injuries, inconsistency, and a brutal AFC North gauntlet all played a role, but Taylor isn’t interested in excuses.
As the man in charge, he knows the public narrative-fair or not-often begins and ends with the head coach. That’s the job. And for Taylor, that means tuning out the noise, whether it’s criticism or praise.
“When I tell you there's a brick wall surrounding me and isolating me from any feelings people have about me or their views on me, I can't allow that to dictate how I operate,” he said. “That doesn't affect me in any way, shape or form. I just keep doing my job to the best of my abilities."
That resilience isn’t new for Taylor. This isn’t his first time navigating choppy waters in Cincinnati.
Back in 2019 and 2020, his first two seasons with the Bengals, the team won just six games combined. The heat was on then, too.
But Taylor stayed the course, and it paid off-with a Super Bowl appearance in 2021 and an AFC Championship Game run the following year.
So while 2025 has been a step backward, Taylor’s not about to abandon the approach that helped turn the Bengals into contenders. He’s not interested in reinventing himself just because the wins haven’t come.
"From a personality standpoint, a lot of people, when things aren't great, they want you to change who you are and your personality, and that's one thing I refuse to do," Taylor said. "That's kind of why I am here today, is because of all the challenges I have faced in my life."
That consistency, he believes, is what players need-especially when things go sideways. Whether it’s 2019 or 2025, Taylor wants his team to know exactly what to expect from their head coach every day.
And while the Bengals’ playoff hopes are gone, the season isn’t over. There are still three games left, and Taylor made it clear the team isn’t mailing it in.
Joe Burrow and the starters will continue to play. The goal now?
Finish strong and set the tone for what comes next.
“I am disappointed where we are in the season right now. I feel everyone's frustration.
I feel the same frustration,” Taylor said. “And we want to finish the season on a really strong note.
That’s important to me. That should be important to everybody.
We’re in this business to win football games, and we haven’t won enough football games. It’s very important we go out and win starting this week.”
The Bengals will use the final stretch of the season to evaluate, compete, and begin laying the groundwork for 2026. Taylor’s under contract through that year, and while this season didn’t go as planned, his track record shows he knows how to build-and rebuild-when necessary.
It’s not the December Taylor envisioned, but it’s the one he’s facing head-on.