Bengals head coach Zac Taylor promised to continue last year’s tradition of gifting postseason game balls to Cincinnati businesses.
He wasted no time after the Bengals’ 24-17 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night.
Taylor was at The Blind Pig a couple blocks from Paycor Stadium by 12:30 a.m. local time to give the bar the first game ball of this year’s postseason.
The tradition began last year, after the Bengals’ first postseason win in 31 years when they defeated the Las Vegas Raiders in the wild-card round. Taylor said he planned to give game balls to team president Mike Brown and the city of Cincinnati.
His first stop after that game: Mount Lookout Tavern. Players helped gift game balls across the city. The tradition continued with wins over the Tennessee Titans and the Kansas City Chiefs, fueling excitement in the city for the Bengals’ historic postseason run.
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Taylor was greeted like a rock star at The Blind Pig early Monday morning.
‘We need you next week in Buffalo,’ Taylor told the crowd. ‘Find a way to get there.’