Cam Taylor-Britt's choice of words put him at odds with Zac Taylor following Bengals' embarrassing loss
Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt walked the walk and talked the talk just eight days ago. He snagged a one-handed interception while covering Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy a few days after taking a subtle shot at the rookie's limited skillset, and it would've been forever etched in Bengals history if the game […]
Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt walked the walk and talked the talk just eight days ago. He snagged a one-handed interception while covering Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy a few days after taking a subtle shot at the rookie's limited skillset, and it would've been forever etched in Bengals history if the game ended in a close win rather than a heartbreaking loss.
The microphone found Taylor-Britt again this past week, and the third-year cornerback opted to describe the Washington Commanders' offense as a "nice college offense."
An interception did not follow this time. In fact, the "college offense" proved to be what may doom the Bengals' entire season before October arrives.
Taylor-Britt and the Bengals had one of the worst defensive performances in recent memory against the Commanders in a 38-33 loss at home on "Monday Night Football." Washington amassed 254 yards through the air as rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels completed an astounding 21 of his 23 passes.
The loss set two firsts in the Zac Taylor era: The first defeat at home in primetime, and the first game in which they failed to force a punt.
If a college offense was able to do that, then it must've been against a high school defense.
Confidence is a prerequisite for a defense's No. 1 cornerback. Taylor-Britt does not lack an ounce of it, but results need to follow before it gets labeled as arrogance.
Intent will also get lost in the narratives. Taylor-Britt had a chance to take back what he said and opted to double down instead.
"I do not regret it," Taylor-Britt said of his prior assessment. "And I didn't mean anything malicious by the comment, it was just made bigger than what it was. Yes, I can definitely eat my words. We did take an L today. It was sort of a college offense. Very quick, quick throws.
Regrets or no, Taylor-Britt and coach Taylor were not on the same page about any of it. Taylor essentially dismissed his cornerbacks' choice of words following the game.
"That's not what we do. We don't need take shots," Taylor told reporters. "They haven't punted in two weeks."
Two weeks without a punt! Tress Way must be bored out of his mind just holding for field goals and extra points.
Taylor is often regarded as a "player's coach" and rarely takes his disapproval of such things to the public. To do so in this instance, however, feels like the necessary course of action after Taylor-Britt and the entire rest of the defense played as bad as they could've.
While red zone troubles plagued the offense in the first half, the reason the Bengals are now 0-3 with their heads in their hands is because their defense couldn't get a single stop when they needed just one. If they were so confident in what kind of offense they were facing, the end result is even more damning.
It's a hole deep enough to silence any more bold claims coming from Taylor-Britt in the near future.
