Bengals HC Zac Taylor able to see a positive from a negative in unexpected coaching staff turnover

Prior to Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor speaking to media members at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, Taylor's coaching staff reached 25 in total thanks to the final three hires becoming official Tuesday morning. 

Four new coaches have been brought in externally and four have been promoted internally. From the head coach entering his sixth year, the real numbers feel small.

"It felt like we had to make 100 hires," Taylor said at the podium. 

Taylor, his 23 assistants, and chief of coaching staff Doug Rosfeld make it an even larger staff than the one Taylor formed in 2019 when he first arrived in Cincinnati. Having a third of that staff changed from last year brings its challenges, but not without the positive that is freshness.

Zac Taylor relieved and ready for new coaching hires

There's equal amounts of excitement and exhaustion that comes from reloading a coaching staff that had made two AFC Championships in three years. From Taylor's point of view, there's also the learning that comes from different perspectives and different backgrounds.

"We certainly went through a lot of interviews, which is really good," Taylor said. "You get to hear a lot of different ways to do things in different places. I've talked to a lot of good candidates.

"Ultimately, we're able to promote some people within our staff that were deserving of the opportunity and more than more than ready for the roles. And then you get to go hire some some different roles like the pass game coordinator, Justin Rascati, and some of the quality control roles that we have."