Bengals officially name former Husker Zac Taylor as head coach

Courtesy: Cincinnati Bengals 

The Bengals today named Zac Taylor as the 10th head coach in team history.

Taylor, 35, leaves the L.A. Rams, for whom he served as an assistant coach the past two seasons, including as quarterbacks coach in 2018. The Rams won the NFC West this season with a 13-3 regular-season record and advanced to Super Bowl LIII against the New England Patriots.

“I am happy and fortunate to join the Cincinnati Bengals as head coach,” Taylor said. “This is a great organization with good people and a rich history, and I am excited to get started. I am looking to add to that history by setting high standards, and holding everyone here accountable to those standards. There is a lot of work to do, and this is day one. We’re going to attack every day with enthusiasm to get this team ready to go.”

Prior to joining the Rams, Taylor was an assistant coach with the Miami Dolphins from 2012-15, including a stint as interim offensive coordinator for the team’s final five games of ’15. In 2016, he was offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Cincinnati. He joined the Rams in 2017 as assistant wide receivers coach, then was named QBs coach in ’18.

Taylor played football collegiately at the University of Nebraska. He was the starting QB for the Cornhuskers from 2005-06 and was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year in ’06.

“Zac is a bright coach with an offensive mind and background, which is important to have in today’s NFL,” said Bengals president Mike Brown. “And he’s young. He embraces new ideas and new ways to do things, which will be a good thing for us. I believe our team will be exciting and fun to watch with him at the helm.”

Taylor succeeds Marvin Lewis, who served as Bengals head coach from 2003-18.

The Bengals will introduce Taylor to media in a news conference at Paul Brown Stadium on Tuesday.