Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor doesn’t plan on naming a starting quarterback for this weekend’s game against the New York Giants.
Taylor and Co. promoted Brandon Allen from the practice squad this week, making it seem obvious he’d be the pick over Ryan Finley, which a report seemed to confirm.
But according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com, Taylor isn’t naming a starter, only providing an outline of what the eventual starter must do:
“Which one gives us the best chance to win. That’s the bottom line. We always do what’s best for the team and you know not every decision is easy but again we’re always going to try to put our team in the best position.”
But at this point, it’s pretty clear the starter won’t be Finley, who entered last weekend’s loss after the Joe Burrow injury and completed just three of his 10 attempts with an interception. A year ago, he completed just 47.1 percent of his 87 attempts with two touchdowns and interceptions over three starts.
Allen’s career resume isn’t much better, but it’s clear Taylor wants to go with the veteran who has experience in his system via their days in Los Angeles.
Viewed through a long-term lens, it’s a knock on Taylor after he traded up in the 2019 draft to take Finley, who has been on the roster all year as the primary backup — now he’s likely being replaced after just 10 pass attempts.
For now though, Taylor will keep trying to be unpredictable to give his team what little edge he can.
