The Cincinnati Bengals gave Zac Taylor another season to lead a roster fashioned around one of the NFL’s most talented offensive cores.
A sizable portion of the fan base appears ready for someone else to take over.
Taylor received a 4.58 out of 10 confidence rating in Covers’ 2026 NFL Fan Confidence Survey, placing him 30th among the league’s 32 head coaches.
Only 15.5% of the Bengals fans surveyed selected Taylor when asked which NFL coach they wanted leading their team, leaving 84.5% in favor of a change.
Covers gathered responses from 5,022 self-identified NFL fans across all 32 fan bases during the offseason.
The outlet asked respondents to grade their coach’s leadership on a 1-to-10 scale and choose the coach they would want running their franchise.
Taylor finished ahead of Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken and New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn in the confidence rankings. His retention percentage topped only Monken’s 12.7%.
The result delivered a clear-cut warning as Taylor enters his eighth season in Cincinnati.
Bengals Fans Deliver Harsh Judgment on Taylor
GettyDENVER, COLORADO – SEPTEMBER 29: Head coach Zac Taylor of the Cincinnati Bengals reacts against the Denver Broncos during the second quarter at Empower Field At Mile High on September 29, 2025 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Taylor helped pull the Bengals out of one of the lowest periods in franchise history and took them to consecutive AFC Championship Games following the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
The progress has stalled since then.
Cincinnati finished 6-11 last season and missed the playoffs for the third consecutive year.
Taylor owns a 52-63-1 regular-season record through seven years, although his 5-2 postseason mark reflects how close the Bengals came to finishing the job during their two deepest runs.
Those playoff memories have started to fade as the Bengals continue to fall short with Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins serving as the bedrock of the offense.
Burrow’s turf toe injury cost him a large portion of the 2025 season, but Cincinnati’s problems extended beyond the quarterback.
NFL.com noted that the Bengals finished 31st in yards allowed and 30th in points allowed while explaining the organization’s decision to retain Taylor and personnel executive Duke Tobin.
Covers offered a sharper assessment of the offense.
The survey analysis argued that elite talent had covered for a stagnant playbook and pointed to an attack too reliant on isolation routes rather than creating easier completions.
The criticism places more attention on Taylor’s ability to build a complete team around his stars.
Burrow’s availability is of the utmost importance to Cincinnati’s potential, but the survey suggests fans have lost patience with seasons unraveling whenever the circumstances become less than ideal.
Taylor Puts Bengals’ 2026 Outcomes on Coaches, Players
GettyCINCINNATI, OHIO – OCTOBER 05: Head coach Zac Taylor of the Cincinnati Bengals looks on during the first half against the Detroit Lions at Paycor Stadium on October 05, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The Bengals made their position clear shortly after the 2025 season ended.
Owner Mike Brown announced that Taylor and Tobin would return, saying he remained confident they were the right leaders to guide the organization forward.
The decision kept the staff together after Cincinnati’s third straight year outside the postseason.
Taylor has since placed responsibility for the turnaround on the people inside the building.
“We’ve got what we need,” Taylor said before training camp. He added that it was “on the players and the coaches to go get it done.”
The Bengals reshaped their defense during the offseason and entered camp with optimism that continuity under defensive coordinator Al Golden would produce better results.
The offense still features Burrow, Chase and Higgins, and that talent also removes some of the excuses available to Taylor.
The survey carries no influence over Brown’s decisions and can’t represent every Bengals supporter.
But it does capture the frustration surrounding a coach who has reached a Super Bowl followed by three seasons without another playoff appearance.
Taylor enters 2026 with the organization’s support.
Winning back the fans may require returning the Bengals to January.
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