Al Golden Has His Work Cut Out For Him
Credit: Cara Owsley via Imagn Images
A short memory is often cited as one of the most essential elements of a professional athlete’s makeup. For teams of a championship caliber, not getting high on recent success and keeping a one-week-at-a-time mindset separates the flashes in the pan from the future Hall of Famers. For those on the losing end, getting over the pain of falling short is essential to dusting one’s self off and pouring energy into breaking the “there’s always next season” cycle.
If there was ever a team that needed a short memory, it’s the 2024 Cincinnati Bengals. Despite having a Triple Crown-winning wide receiver in Ja’Marr Chase, a potential two-time NFL Comeback Player of the Year in Joe Burrow, and the NFL sack leader in Trey Hendrickson, the team missed the playoffs. Their 9-8 record was winning in theory only, with several losses coming from the team beating itself, often improbably snatching defeat from the hands of victory. The team’s defense was largely to blame for this, finishing in the bottom 10 of the league in all major statistical categories, including being tied for the most touchdowns allowed (53), seventh in total points allowed (434), and third in first downs allowed (361). As of right now, Cincy’s 2021 Super Bowl run feels like it may as well have come before the invention of the forward pass.
Re-enter Al Golden, the man gifted the opportunity to do what no Bengals coordinator has done before him: Elevate Cincinnati to a Super Bowl win.
At his introductory press conference on January 27, Golden did and said everything you want a coordinator to do in that spot. He exuded a calm, reserved confidence, speaking without cockiness or an aloof nature. He answered each reporter’s question with detail without ever responding in a manner that could seem curt, insincere, or flat-out false. He likewise didn’t try to outshine Taylor, instead offering the complimentary Doc Holliday to his Wyatt Earp. He looked the part, talked the part, and did everything possible to instill confidence in the fan base that the team’s biggest problems would be fixed.
Since his first stint in Cincinnati (as linebacker coach in 2020 and 2021), the defense in Bengal Land has collapsed and is set to get worse on paper. Two of their best defensive players (B.J. Hill and the venerable Mike Hilton) are free agents. As for the players still in the fold, both the linebacker corps and secondary are underwhelming and rife with unproven youngsters and underachieving veterans. Throw in the fact that Trey Hendrickson, by far the team’s best defensive player, is both on the wrong side of 30 and in the last year of his contract, and Golden definitely has his work cut out for him.
Especially in a division in the AFC North where he will have to see Lamar Jackson at least twice a year.
Golden does not need to be the Bengals’ answer to defensive geniuses like the Kansas City Chiefs’ Steve Spagnuolo or the Philadelphia Eagles’ Vic Fangio. What he can’t be, however, is similar to the head coach versions of Spagnuolo and Fangio — a bad judge of talent, overmatched, and showing a refusal to adapt.
Coming off Notre Dame’s nearly-historic run in the NCAA, Golden now has an opportunity to bring new schemes (and hopefully, players with the talent to operate them) to combat a sense of stagnation that formed under Lou Anarumo. Save for the occasional corner blitz by the aforementioned Hilton, and Hendrickson’s Pro Bowl-level performance, the Bengals’ defense was chock-full of communication errors and suffered from a lack of leadership to put a lid on the tidal wave of explosive plays against.
Obviously, star-level leaders like Cleveland’s Myles Garrett, Pittsburgh’s T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward, and everyone on the Baltimore Ravens don’t grow on trees. Still, you’d think one of the seeds the Bengals have planted might have bore some fruit on that side of the ball. Does some of that fall on bad drafting and (outside of Hendrickson) a lack of impact free agent signings? Sure, but the coaches are the first to take the fall for front office mistakes, so fair or not, fixing those issues is on Golden’s shoulders now.
There is, of course, one thing that may give Bengals’ fans pause: On the biggest possible stage, when the number four pass defense in college football needed to step up the most, Golden was unable to find a way to get his players to stop Ohio State’s aerial assault. On a critical third-down play that nearly everyone watching knew would see the ball go to the Buckeyes’ best receiver (Jeremiah Smith), the Fighting Irish couldn’t stop it. Despite trying valiantly, Christian Gray needed help, but Golden’s call left him one-on-one, the result all widely known by those who bleed Scarlet-and-Grey. As the Bengals’ new defensive coordinator, those decisions are not ones Taylor can afford Golden to make, not if they plan to win a championship.
But if Golden can adjust and avoid those pitfalls, he’ll have a… golden… opportunity to be the missing piece the Bengals need to lift the Lombardi Trophy and put the memory of 2024 far behind.
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