The Cincinnati Bengals pulled off an upset this offseason by keeping their key coaches around Zac Taylor in place despite outside interest from other teams.
Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan, defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo and even quarterbacks coach Dan Pitcher and receivers coach Troy Walters will return despite outside interest.
One look at the situation revealed the Bengals are the only team in the league with the head coach and his coordinators all boasting at least five years together.
Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com provided an excellent historical breakdown of just how rare this feat is, as one has to travel all the way back to the days of Paul Brown:
“Brown didn’t have an offensive coordinator in name, but he worked it along with wide receivers/quarterbacks coach Bill Walsh and offensive line coach Bill “Tiger,” Johnson. All three were together when Chuck Weber became defensive coordinator in 1970 until Brown retired at the end of the 1975 season, although Weber didn’t have the DC title in that final season. In the five seasons from 1970-74, the Bengals won their first two division titles.”
While the feat doesn’t figure to continue much beyond next season given the interest other teams have already shown in the four names listed above, it’s a boon for the 2023 edition of the team and something of a notable historical feat.
