SI Article

[Hoofhearted]

(02-18-2019, 06:31 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: I don't think I'm being over the top in suggesting that the DC search has been a bit of a mess. I've repeatedly said that this situation can be resolved, and that I'm not saying the Taylor era is a flop. That would be ridiculous. I just feel this DC search looks poorly planned, partly because we didn't talk to Taylor between his 1st interview and the Super Bowl. Because of that, now we appear to be throwing a bunch of coaches against the wall and seeing which one sticks.

I'm not saying we should hire someone just to hire someone. What I'm saying is that we likely wouldn't be having this discussion if the Bengals/Taylor had a clear (and good) plan going into this. Sure, there were reasons why all these coaches didn't work out, but maybe we should've had an idea of who was likely or not going in? 

We had to know Dennis Allen was a long shot. We didn't know anything on Del Rio or Capers before February 4th? Or any of these other guys? Again, I'm not calling for anyone to be hanged. I just think we paid for being "nice guys" and not talking to Taylor until he was hired. Especially with him being young, and perhaps a bit lacking as far as league connections go.

We can still get a good coach...I firmly believe that, but I'm just not buying the narrative that the only reason we're here is because the Bengals/Taylor are being thorough in a search for "his guy".

The built-in skepticism the Bengals have earned is combining with the uncertainty of a new coach who’s never done this before to creates the exact feeling many of us are experiencing.