The Cincinnati Bengals have won the AFC North. After a thrilling victory over the Kansas City Chiefs (34:31), quarterback Joe Burrow and receiver Ja’Marr Chase are especially praised. But head coach Zac Taylor also deserves recognition. Also because he was almost fired.

Munich/Cincinnati – It was the AFC’s top game in Week 17, with the Cincinnati Bengals hosting the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bengals pulled off the surprise and won 31-24 at home against the Chiefs, who thus lost the number one seed in the AFC to the Tennessee Titans.

The decisive factors were, of course, the two top players of the offence, Ja’Marr Chase (266 yards, three touchdowns) and Joe Burrow (30/39, 446 yards, four touchdowns). But head coach Zac Taylor can also take credit for this win. Taylor, however, is rarely talked about.

Euphoria at the start, followed by disillusionment

February 2019 Review:The euphoria at the start of Taylor’s tenure was high, after all, coming from the coaching staff of Sean McVay, the successful head coach of the Los Angeles Rams.

Hall of Fame offensive lineman and Bengals legend Anthony Munoz, when Taylor was hired, was one of the first to have the opportunity to speak with him. “I’m very excited about the hiring of Zac Taylor and the young players of this franchise should be too,” the now 63-year-old revealed afterwards.

Taylor’s first season didn’t go as planned, however, finishing 2019 with a record of 2-14 and losing franchise icons A.J. Green and Andy Dalton in the process. In return, the Bengals had the first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

When the Bengals selected Joe Burrow and Tee Higgins in the first and second rounds in that draft to replace Green and Dalton, some hope reemerged, only to lose Burrow later in the season with a torn anterior cruciate and medial ligaments. The Bengals picked up just one more win without Burrow, ending up with six wins and 25 losses with one tie after two years under Zac Taylor. Too few for the Bengals’ standards.

From bogeyman to coach-of-the-year favourite in four months

Not a few fans and pundits therefore called for Taylor to be sacked if there was nothing to come of a good result in the division in 2021 either. The 38-year-old was ranked seventh in the preseason in the betting odds on which head coach could be fired first.

But in – and also thanks to – the two weak seasons at the beginning, Taylor has assembled a young, hungry and above all strong team. Thanks to Burrow, Higgins, Chase and Joe Mixon at running back, no one in Ohio is talking about Dalton and/or Green anymore.

If the Bengals were ridiculed in the beginning, they are now a serious Super Bowl contender. “Other teams really have to take the Bengals seriously in the playoffs or there will be problems,” former quarterback Michael Vick said on “Fox.”

As of 3 January, Zac Taylor is the favourite on the betting portal “Draftkings” for the Coach of the Year award. Four months after he was still being traded in the top 10 most likely dismissals. A turnaround so rare in NFL history.

Spanguolo and Reid coached out

Former quarterback Taylor unpacked his best performance as a head coach at just the right time. Against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 17, where the review comes full circle, his team didn’t play poorly before the break, but still barely managed to stop Patrick Mahomes’ offense. Still, defensive coordinator Steve Spanguolo’s unit seemed to gain more and more control of the game.

After trailing by 14 points at one point, Taylor and his coaching staff made significant adjustments that immediately bore fruit. The Bengals allowed just three points defensively and scored 17 themselves after halftime. Taylor trusts the players he has at his disposal.

It was the masterpiece so far of Zac Taylor, Cincinnati’s stand-up guy. After almost being sacked and picking up just six wins in his first two seasons, he has now racked up ten. Plus the division title ahead of the favoured Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns.

Who the Bengals will meet in the playoffs has not yet been decided. But no matter who it is, no one will want to play Taylor’s team.