Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Zac Taylor hoping to slow down former pupil Ryan Tannehill and Titans

xciUKHDyDIF4
The Bills delivered the statement of Wild Card weekend with a 47-10 demolition of the Patriots, but Michael Holley and Michael Smith disagree on whether Buffalo looks like Super Bowl favorites in the AFC.

Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor spent a total of eight years coaching teams with Ryan Tannehill on the roster.

Taylor was at Texas A&M for four years alongside Tannehill and would become an assistant quarterbacks coach for the Miami Dolphins in 2012 after Tannehill was selected with the eighth overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. Taylor and Tannehill would spend a total of four years together in Miami as Taylor ascended to offensive coordinator in 2015.

I had a tremendous eight years being around Ryan Tannehill,” Taylor said, via Mike Organ of the Tennesseean. “I’ve probably got a stronger library of all the throws, all the catches, all the runs he had over those eight years than maybe he does because as a coach you’re watching all those cutups all the time.”

Now Taylor is on the opposite sidelines this weekend as the Bengals attempt to play spoiler to the top-seeded Tennessee Titans a week after earning their first playoff victory in 31 years. Taylor knows that Tannehill will present a difficult challenge for Cincinnati to handle this Saturday.

“He’s a tremendous quarterback and it’s no surprise he’s helped that team be in the position they’ve been in the last couple of years,” Taylor said. “He executes that offense at a high level and he can make a defense pay if you let him.”

Tannehill hasn’t been a record-setter during his time in Tennessee, but he has been incredibly efficient to balance out the rushing attack led by Derrick Henry. With Henry out half the season due to injury, Tannehill’s interceptions spiked to 14 this season after combining for just 13 in the previous two seasons. However, he still completed over 67 percent of his passes for 3,734 yards and 21 touchdowns for the Titans. The effort was still good enough to help Tennessee secure the top seed in the AFC and a first-round bye.