The Cincinnati Bengals will be closely watching the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Ohio State Buckeyes in the national championship for one key reason.

This past season, the Bengals had a special year, though not a good year. Quarterback Joe Burrow played at an MVP level while Ja’Marr Chase was the NFL’s leading receiver.

After starting the season 1-4 through five games, Cincinnati was unable to salvage its season and finished with a 9-8 record, missing the playoffs.

The Bengals had two superstar offensive players but their defense wasn’t good enough to put together a full season.

The team didn’t quite have a chance with the defense they had assembled, and they now have a massive offseason coming.

Not only does Cincinnati need to, on a budget, build out a strong defense, but they need a defensive coordinator to pull everything together.

The club could be zoned in on one key candidate, though. The Bengals could very well be in the running to hire Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden.

However, with an expanded College Football Playoff field, the season runs longer. Golden and the Fighting Irish are set to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in under an hour.

For the Bengals, they’ll have a close eye on the national championship as one of the two programs will add a title under their belt. Cincinnati can then ramp up conversations with Golden.

Sometimes, when there is interest but not an opportunity to deter focus from their current season, a hire is made quickly.

Regardless of the result, Golden could be on Zac Taylor’s staff once again — as he was the club’s linebacker coach in 2020 and 2021.

With the national championship ending, Golden could return to Cincinnati and join the Bengals, which would be phenomenal news for the franchise.