Zac Taylor offers simple reasoning behind the important Joe Burrow decision he’s already made for the Bengals
Zac Taylor confirms Joe Burrow is staying on the field for the rest of the season.
Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor confirms quarterback Joe Burrow will play the final three games of the 2025 regular season.
Taylor offered a “yes” when asked if Burrow is going to finish out the year as the starter, and a “no” when asked if there was any consideration to sit the franchise QB, along with another simple statement during his Monday press conference.
“Because we want to win.”
Taylor should naturally be aligned with his QB here. Burrow pushed through what was thought to be a three-month recovery in order to play as soon as possible. The last thing he wants to do is watch games when he could be on the field for them.
As for Taylor, well, winning as many games as possible is absolutely in his best interest.
Zac Taylor needs wins now more than ever
The more losses the Bengals incur, the more Taylor should worry about his job security. No one knows how safe Taylor is more than Cincinnati’s front office and the man himself, but finishing a season with fewer wins than the number of years he’s been on the job would make tough justifying his return in 2026.
Taylor needs the best version of the Bengals out on the field, and that includes Burrow despite a horrid showing on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. In fact, Taylor needs to prove he can still win more games with Burrow as his QB than not.
Since the start of the 2023 season, the first season Cincinnati’s three-year postseason drought began, Zac Taylor is only two games above .500 with Burrow under center.
Taylor’s record with Burrow was 29-19-1 from 2020-22 when counting their 5-2 postseason record and Burrow’s rookie year in 2020 when the rest of the roster was far from competitive. The drop off in the last three years has been notable, and if the Bengals lose their final three games, they’ll be under .500 with Burrow since starting their journey back to the playoffs three seasons ago.
In no way should that be acceptable for Cincinnati. It shouldn’t be acceptable for Burrow, and honestly, it shouldn’t be for Taylor either.
These final three games may not matter in the grand scheme of the Bengals’ season, but the immediate future of the franchise could change based on how the next 12 quarters unfold. Ownership in Cincinnati takes every single game into account when making the most important decisions, especially concerning the employment of the head coach.
Taylor needs to win to stay safe, and if he’s going down, he’s going down swinging with his QB.
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