Zac Taylor on Bengals' Win Over Browns
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00:00 That was finishing it the right way in your mind?
00:02 It was.
00:02 We challenged these guys to start the game the right way.
00:06 And I think going a halftime up 24-0.
00:10 Proud of the way our defense through three quarters
00:12 held them to zero.
00:13 Proud of the offense for finishing the last scoring
00:15 drive with a 99-yard touchdown drive.
00:18 I thought our special teams units played well all game
00:21 and did a really good job in the coverage and the kicking aspects
00:23 of things.
00:24 And so again, just proud of the way--
00:26 because this can be a tricky game.
00:29 That last game of the season and thought
00:31 our guys handled it professionally in the right way
00:33 as we expected to.
00:34 So really proud of the way that they finished there.
00:37 I'll say this also.
00:38 Really proud of the fans for finishing it the right way too.
00:41 I thought the turnout today was really awesome.
00:44 And the support that we've gotten from them.
00:46 And it's a game where there's not playoffs on the line.
00:49 It is cold.
00:50 And there's every excuse not to be here.
00:51 And so really it was appreciated by myself and our team.
00:55 Just to see the support.
00:56 I looked up in that upper deck and there's people up there.
00:58 I don't know if that'd be me.
01:00 But they showed up and they supported us.
01:01 And I appreciate that.
01:02 And we look forward to rewarding them with championship level
01:05 football next year.
01:06 You talked about as a milestone.
01:07 It's kind of happened over camp.
01:09 You killed over 1,000.
01:10 Mark it for the 100.
01:11 Yeah, you're happy for those guys.
01:12 Because the work that they've put in to get there.
01:15 And to get there, I think, for a lot of guys is special.
01:20 Because they put in the work.
01:21 And our team is so team-based that everybody wants
01:24 the team to do well and win.
01:26 But when you get opportunities for guys
01:28 to hit some of those personal milestones that are important.
01:30 And will be forever documented in the history of this team.
01:34 I think that's cool for the guys that were able to do that.
01:38 What was your message to the team?
01:40 You don't seem to mind.
01:41 But you kind of--
01:41 Yeah, just proud of the way that they finished today.
01:43 That's all we could control.
01:44 Was how we came out.
01:45 Playing with really good energy.
01:48 And I thought in a lot of ways that that's what they did.
01:50 We wanted to win the turnover battle.
01:52 We wanted to win the penalty battle.
01:55 And so again, I think we went into this game first
01:57 in the league in fewest penalties.
01:58 And third in turnover margin.
02:00 And one of the things was, hey, if we
02:02 continue to play disciplined ball
02:03 and finish high in those two categories, like we always do,
02:06 then you're going to win this game.
02:08 And I thought they did a good job responding to that.
02:10 [INAUDIBLE]
02:11 You said you wanted to win the game as a priority.
02:14 And some of those guys hit milestones.
02:15 But some of the young guys, there's
02:17 this little mantra of two touchdowns.
02:18 Charlie Jones got involved early.
02:20 Yeah, it was good for the game to take shape the way it did.
02:23 And obviously, they arrested a bunch of their guys.
02:25 And so for us to get some opportunities
02:27 for a lot of guys that haven't gotten a lot of reps
02:30 to A, be rewarded for their efforts this season,
02:34 B, for launching Pat into the future.
02:36 So I thought there was a lot of guys
02:38 that got a lot of opportunities and made the most of it.
02:41 Does it mean anything not going to keep
02:43 [INAUDIBLE]
02:45 Well, I mean, our goals are to win the division,
02:47 win the Super Bowl.
02:47 And you've got to fare well in your division
02:50 to give yourself the best opportunity to do that.
02:52 And so that's something we're always aware of.
02:55 We've got to do a great job of that moving forward.
02:57 And it's a tough division.
02:58 That's well documented.
02:59 But going one and five is in no way, shape, or form
03:03 acceptable for us.
03:04 And all we could do is control today
03:06 and find a way to get a win.
03:07 How surreal is it to have a winning record?
03:09 Any of you with a winning record that you've last--
03:12 It's just-- it's a good division.
03:14 And we didn't do enough to give ourself our best chance.
03:17 That's really all we got.
03:21 [INAUDIBLE]
03:22 How would you assess the win that Jake was able to finish
03:24 here and take home for Joe?
03:26 I was really proud of Jake.
03:27 And again, you don't get a lot of reps
03:29 over the course of the season.
03:30 Then you're thrown in the fire.
03:32 And we were playing really meaningful football
03:34 and found really good stretches of team winning football.
03:37 That kept us in the chase.
03:39 And I thought he performed very well,
03:41 gave us a lot of confidence in the future
03:44 for a backup quarterback job.
03:45 And that's one of those things.
03:47 You just never know what you can really
03:48 got until they get the opportunity to do it.
03:50 And the preseason, we try to make it as best we can.
03:53 But you're not playing against starting level players.
03:55 And you're not playing with our starting players.
03:57 And so I thought Jake got a great opportunity.
03:59 He made the most of it.
04:00 Really proud of the way the guys rallied around them.
04:02 And I thought that he handled his opportunities really well.
04:05 It looked like after that 99-yard drive,
04:07 you guys kind of shared a laugh with him coming off.
04:10 What was that about?
04:12 It was-- yeah, we were--
04:14 the headset, I was biting on him a little bit in the headset.
04:16 And so we hugged it out.
04:17 But it was good.
04:18 Good communication.
04:20 Was he upset with the--
04:21 No, we're all good.
04:22 We're all good.
04:23 I'm not going to get into it.
04:25 I know that contract stuff is probably
04:27 hard for everything you're doing right now.
04:29 But going into this game, do you get a sense
04:31 that this could be one of the last times you play with some
04:33 of the key guys?
04:34 Or kind of help--
04:34 I don't put a lot of thought on that.
04:36 Those conversations haven't even begun to take place.
04:39 They do their job upstairs.
04:40 And then I get up to speed as the spring goes.
04:42 So I'm not going to worry about that right now.
04:44 [INAUDIBLE]
04:45 How much do you relish the moment of being able to play
04:48 one last game with this year's group?
04:49 How much is that part of your thought process?
04:51 Yeah, every group.
04:53 Every year.
04:54 It's that team.
04:55 And just the way the rosters go.
04:56 It's as things take shape as the offseason goes.
04:59 And it's never the same.
05:00 And I do appreciate this group for fighting to the bitter end.
05:03 And their character cannot be questioned.
05:06 What they went through and what they gave us this year.
05:08 And I'm so proud of those guys for continuing
05:11 to stay together.
05:12 You never saw anyone pointing fingers.
05:14 Even if we lost two games in a row,
05:16 you never saw people start turning on each other
05:18 and pointing fingers.
05:18 And I think that's the mark of a locker room that's
05:21 got a great chance going forward.
05:22 And so again, just proud of our staff and players
05:25 for maintaining that throughout the season.
05:28 Zach, you've been pretty even keel the whole year,
05:31 win or lose.
05:32 You've been the same.
05:32 You obviously think that's important.
05:34 Why is a head coach-- is it so important?
05:36 I just try to be true to myself.
05:39 I don't know that it's important for a head coach necessarily.
05:41 It's my personality.
05:42 It's my dad's personality.
05:43 It's my brother's personality.
05:45 And so I think that's one thing that my dad has instilled in us
05:48 is just be true to yourself.
05:49 And people respond to that better
05:51 than if you're trying to fake your way through it.
05:53 And so that's just the only way I know how to do it.