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The rumor mill keeps spinning in Cincinnati, as the staff overhaul of 2019 is beginning to take shape. Reports say that the head coaching job will be heading to current Rams assistant, Zac Taylor, and he has some preferences to round out the staff.
Throughout the week, the team has been shedding assistant coaches from the Marvin Lewis era, leaving a handful of openings. Offensive coordinator Bill Lazor was given his walking papers at the end of this week, and Taylor reportedly has a successor in mind.
Coordinator hires are big for young head coaches, and it looks like Bengals front-runner (coach elect?) Zac Taylor is looking at experienced ones. I'm told ex-Seahawks OC Darrell Bevell is high on his list.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) January 12, 2019
Darrell Bevell was unemployed this past season, but was the offensive coordinator for two different NFL teams from 2006-2017. He started off in Minnesota, where he spearheaded the fantastic 2009 season by the Vikings and Brett Favre.
He then latched on to the Seahawks with Pete Carroll in 2011. He was credited for molding Russell Wilson into a top-caliber NFL quarterback, as well as for scouting him more than others and lauding his abilities to the Seahawks’ front office.
The Carroll-Bevell-Wilson triad teamed up for a decisive win in Super Bowl XLVIII and another near-win against the Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX. Bevell and Carroll received a lot of heat after that particular loss because of the infamous play-call on New England’s one-yard line at the end of the contest.
Even so, Bevell is a guy who has been known to made stars out of low-round draft picks and those who are deemed to have lower NFL measurables. Wilson is the shining beacon, while receivers like Doug Baldwin, Ricardo Lockette, Jaron Brown and others became viable threats in the team’s offense in recent years.
We’ll see if this hire materializes, but it would make for an interesting combination. And, as we’ve discussed a bit so far, this will also have major implications at the quarterback position for the Bengals going forward.