Most of the talk around the Cincinnati Bengals under Zac Taylor’s watchful eye during OTAs has been about fun.
The fun factor includes more involved coaches, cellphone breaks, music in the locker room – those sorts of culture-altering details.
But the how of the coaching hasn’t really been zoomed in on — until now. MMQB’s Albert Breer caught up with Andy Dalton, who explained the approach is no longer simply telling players what to do without reason.
“A lot of times the quarterbacks get all that information, you know why you’re calling it, you know what you want it in,” Dalton said. “But now everyone’s getting that information. It makes it easier for guys to be on the same page, because they know why [a play] is called. That’s why it’s been really good.”
This is a rather large deal. As opposed to telling a skill position player to do something, the new coaching staff is taking the time to explain why from all angles.
And while this all sounds like positive offseason talk, one has to wonder if this can clean up errors from past years such as a wrong route by John Ross or a missed assignment by an offensive lineman.
This is something we’ve heard from Tyler Boyd about John Ross: he slows down to think instead of just playing at his fastest.
Taylor and his staff have a fresh approach in this regard and one that isn’t making a big splash right now, yet it could end up making all the difference.
