Bengals get a major win after NFC team lands on new coaching hire earlier than expected
Cincinnati should be thrilled with what happened in the Sunshine State early Thursday morning.
The Cincinnati Bengals had eyes on what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were deciding to do at offensive coordinator, and they got clarification Thursday morning.
The Buccaneers are hiring former Atlanta Falcons OC Zac Robinson for the same role.
This is big news as Tampa Bay completed a virtual interview with Bengals offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher Wednesday morning, and the club planned on interviewing former Bengals OC Brian Callahan Thursday for the second time.
Callahan, formerly the OC in Cincinnati, was considered a front-runners to land the Bucs’ gig, and Pitcher was a late addition to the search after Bengals head coach Zac Taylor granted him permission to interview with teams looking for a play-calling OC.
Neither one will be hired, which means the Bengals have all their options remaining on the table.
Dan Pitcher and Brian Callahan both remain available for Bengals
Callahan was the very first OC candidate the Bucs interviewed this month, and if interview No. 2 went well Thursday, the club could’ve pulled the trigger and hired him to his third job in four years.
That would’ve been a mix of good and bad news for the Bengals if they were to do nothing else.
Callahan securing the job would mean Pitcher would be left without any other team vying for his services. Another club could come calling, but that hasn’t happened yet. There are still several head-coaching vacancies, and the eventual hires (who aren’t offensive play-callers) could look to Pitcher as their play-calling OC.
Callahan is also Cincinnati’s likely backup plan to replace Pitcher, so if he was off the board, that would’ve changed things.
The Bengals simply opening the door for Pitcher to leave for another OC gig indicates they are confident in finding a replacement. That replacement could possibly come internally, ala quarterbacks coach Brad Kragthorpe or wide receivers coach Troy Walters, but the belief is Callahan would get the call to come back and resume OC duties. The former Tennessee Titans HC from 2024 to the first month of the 2025 season spent the previous five years as Taylor’s OC in Cincy.
This is why what the Bucs did is so crucial. They could’ve hired the Bengals’ current OC, or the OC Cincinnati would hire if it lost its current OC. They hired neither, and the Bengals would have both of their top options still available/employed.
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