The Cincinnati Bengals are heading into a pivotal season. After 16 long years, the team finally fired longtime head coach Marvin Lewis after last season. They'll be transitioning into a new era of football in 2019, with 35-year-old offensive whizkid Zac Taylor leading the way.
For the first eight years of his career, receiver A.J. Green has had a defensive-minded head coach, so Taylor is a breath of fresh air for him.
Green is very happy with the Bengals' hire, and recently raved about his new coach, per Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com.
“Playing with coach Lewis, it’s all about the defense,” Green said. “You don’t show up the defense at practice. But Zac is like, ‘OTA one, we’re going to kick the defense’s butt.’ That’s what we like to hear. I love the way he teaches. He’s not yelling at you, he’s teaching every little detail and having you understand why we run it this way.”
That's music to the ears of Bengals fans, as Green is still the team's most important player on offense. He's been banged up the past few years, and missed seven games this past season with a toe injury. If the Bengals are going to bounce back next season, they'll need a big year from Green.
Taylor is the latest in the league's trend of hiring young, offensive coaches. He comes to Cincinnati from Los Angeles, where he was working under the original whizkid himself Sean McVay. Taylor was the Rams' quarterbacks coach last year, so this is a big step up for him. But so far, it sounds like he's handling the transition well.
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