Eric Bienemy

[Boone]

Bienemy's coaching history, via Wikipedia:

College
Bieniemy attended the University of Colorado Boulder and played for the Colorado Buffaloes football team. He was a two-time first-team all Big-Eight performer, in 1988 and 1990, earning the conference's offensive Player of the Year honor as a senior. He was unanimously included on the 1990 College Football All-America Team and finished third in Heisman Trophy voting after rushing for 1,628 with 17 touchdowns during the Buffalo's national championship season.[2]

Bieniemy is Colorado's all-time leader in rushing (3,940 yards), rushing touchdowns (42), and all-purpose yards (4,351).[3] He was inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.[4]

Professional career
Bieniemy was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the second round (39th overall) of the 1991 NFL Draft. He appeared in Super Bowl XXIX with the team and recorded a 33-yard reception, the longest of the game for the Chargers. He signed with the Cincinnati Bengals in 1995. His final season came with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1999. Bieniemy finished his NFL playing career 1,589 yards rushing, 1,223 yards receiving, 276 return yards, 1,621 yards on kickoff returns, and 12 touchdowns (11 rushing and one kickoff).

Coaching career
Early college jobs
Bieniemy returned to Colorado in 2001 to finish his degree and was the running backs coach for the Buffaloes from 2001 to 2002 and was UCLA running back coach from 2003 to 2005, as well as the team's recruiting coordinator in 2005.[5]

Minnesota Vikings
Following UCLA's 2005 Sun Bowl victory, Bieniemy accepted a position as running backs coach for the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL. During his time as the Vikings running back coach, his leading rusher Adrian Peterson, led the NFC in rushing with 1,341 yards in 2007 and also in 2008 with 1,760 yards, which was also top in the NFL. Bieniemy was given the title of assistant head coach in 2010.[6]

Return to Colorado
On December 2, 2010, Bieniemy returned to Colorado as offensive coordinator under head coach Jon Embree. In 2020, Bieniemy was offered the head coach position at Colorado but declined.[7]

Kansas City Chiefs
In 2013, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid hired Bieniemy to be the running backs coach.In 2018, Reid promoted Bieniemy to offensive coordinator to succeed Matt Nagy who had been hired as the head coach of the Chicago Bears.[8] In Bieniemy's first season as the Chiefs offensive coordinator, the Chiefs were first in the NFL in yards per game and points scored.[7] The Chiefs scored the third-most points in a season in NFL history with 565. Additionally, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes became the second quarterback in NFL history, along with Peyton Manning, to throw for 5,000 yards and 50 touchdowns in a season.[9] The Chiefs reached the 2018 AFC Championship Game where they lost to the New England Patriots. In 2019, Bieniemy won his first Super Bowl when the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers 31–20 in Super Bowl LIV. In 2022, Bieniemy won his second Super Bowl with the Chiefs after defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 in Super Bowl LVII.

Bieniemy has been a primary head coaching candidate since the 2019 offseason, and he has been a commonly noted example within the large amounts of criticism over how few league owners were hiring black candidates. Since the 2019 offseason, Bieniemy has had interviews and interview requests from 17 teams in the entire league — the Bengals, Dolphins, Jets, Buccaneers, Cardinals, Panthers, Browns, Giants, Falcons, Lions, Texans, Jaguars, Chargers, Eagles, Broncos, Saints and Colts — but has yet to be hired by any organization.[10]

 

[burgold]

I guess my first questions have to do with fit and learning curve. How long will it take the players to learn this new system. How many of our players are imperfect fits for what Bienemy wants to do? If the are imperfect, will Bienemy be a player centric OC or a scheme centric OC.

 

[Boone]

First question looming for me - what will Bienemy do with the current offensive coaching staff?

Current staff:
Juan Castillo - Tight Ends
Todd Storm - Assistant TEs
Luke Del Rio - Assistant QBs/Offensive Quality Control
Jim Hostler - Senior Offensive Assistant
Randy Jordan - Running Backs
Jennifer King - Assistant RBs
John Matsko - OL
Travelle Wharton - Assistant OL
Tyrae Reid Jr. - Offensive Assistant
Drew Terrell - WRs
Ken Zampese - QBs

I think it's very important he bring in his own staff. If he retains the existing staff, I think that would be a very bad sign as it would indicate he really doesn't have full autonomy. I don't think that will happen. I have a feeling he will retain Randy Jordan and Jennifer King because our rushing attack has been very good overall (and there would be negative blowback from firing one of the few female coaches - unfair, but likely true). I'm not sure anyone else is safe.

 

[Chris]

One thing I find interesting regarding the uproar about Bieniemy not getting a HC opportunity after so many interviews is that being a successful HC involves a lot more than being a successful coordinator.

I also firmly believe that ownership has go-to names to invite in for Rooney Rule compliance and that least a portion of his interviews were scheduled after a hiring decision was already made.

That said, the potential upside of hiring Bieniemy is a night and day improvement over Rivera’s last selection for the position. This choice screams of a Hail Mary attempt by Rivera to save his job and in doing so it just might turn out to have been a saving grace turn of events.

Now…fix the goddamn offensive line.

 

[Boone]

A lot is riding on what Bienemy does at QB. With new ownership looming, and at most 2 years to 'prove it' - adds a different dynamic (and maybe altered priorities) to the whole scenario. I've seen rumors that Bienemy 'is in love' with Sam Howell and that this was a driving force in him wanting to come to DC, but I have no idea if that is factual or utter horseshit? As Om said a few weeks ago, this is going to be one of the most tumultuous and interesting stretches ever for Washington fans. So much going on at once...

 

[Chris]

Motivation should not be an issue.

Rivera to keep his job. Bieniemy to prove his abilities.

 

[Rhino-Rhino]

I’m going to take a wait and see approach. I like the hire but it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve really got excited over a hire to only have it fizzle out to another mediocre season .. I think this offense can be really good .We have talent on that side of the ball but still struggle on the line . QB is a question mark and someone at TE meds to step up and take over the job imo. I look forward to seeing how he puts this offense together and his vision for this team but anything short of a 10 win season for me is pretty much status quo

 

[Neophyte]

I am beyond stunned at the craziness this has kicked off. Fans on social media acting like we just won the Super Bowl.

I think Bieniemy is an upgrade over Turner so for that reason I like the move. He has a history of association with a highly productive offense. No matter how big his role was, he was part of the success. Another positive.

Most of the guys who have come out of Reid's tree to run their own show elsewhere appear to have done fairly well. Positive.

This is still the Washington franchise and we are still owned by Dan Snyder. Super negative until a change in the second thing removes the cloud of the first.

About the particulars:

2-year deal - this was the least Bieniemy was coming here for, IMHO. I would not have taken the job for less than this just because of the uncertainty around the ownership issue and the huge chance that the passwords of the whole staff will stop working the day after the 2023 season ends. It is security for Bieniemy and his family and it's smart. What it isn't is an indication that Bieniemy has been promised the job after Rivera. While I admit that it is possible he has had Payton-like discussions with prospective owners, I think it is highly unlikely. He isn't a proven head coach in this league like Payton. There are also reports of a possible bidder touring the facility just yesterday. If true, this tells me Snyder doesn't have final bids yet, much less a handshake agreement in place. And that is what it would take for someone to already be working on assembling their own coaching staff by tricking the current coaching staff into hiring them.

Building his own staff - likely something Bieniemy wanted so he could show off that part of being a head coach. Reid handles staffing in KC, as I think most head coaches do. Giving Bieniemy control over his own staff gives him something of a jr head coach role in this organization. I doubt very much EB will hire anyone that isn't approved by Ron but still, it appears that he is likely master of his domain.

New Title - an excuse for the bigger paycheck. EB was already making a reported $2.5 million in KC (2.5x what Turner was paid here last year, btw) and it's been reported that he is getting a pay raise here.

All things considered, I am cautiously optimistic but I'm not throwing a party. I'll wait to see what the actual product on the field looks like first.

After all, this is still Dan Snyder's team.

 

[Chris]

Social media is a dumpster fire. About anything and everything. I am never stunned by anything on it. That is why I basically ‘quit‘ Twitter and only follow a very select few for reporting only.

 

[Boone]

I'm a slow learner Chris. I still respond to the idiots at times. I almost always regret it. As my Dad used to say in one of his favorite expressions... never try and teach a pig to sing. It annoys the pig and it's a waste of your time.

 

[Kel Varnsen]

I mean, it's the offseason. This team has led the league in offseason victories the past 23 years. I'm even more glad that during times like these, I'm not on social media. One small sparks always starts a blazing forest fire on there. It doesn't matter if the news is good or bad, it all get blown out of proportion.

I'll admit I'm coming around on Bieniemy. But that's mostly the reality of him being the guy and me wanting him to succeed because that means the team succeeds. And the ultimate success on the field would be Howell turning into an NFL starting QB. That's step 1.

 

[Chris]

I'm a slow learner Chris. I still respond to the idiots at times. I almost always regret it. As my Dad used to say in one of his favorite expressions... never try and teach a pig to sing. It annoys the pig and it's a waste of your time.

That is the main reason that I choose to primarily waste spend my time reading and posting here.

Even when other’s opinions are wrong (unlike mine) they are mostly rational, reasonable, and absolutely free of vitriol.

 

[Chris]

I mean, it's the offseason. This team has led the league in offseason victories the past 23 years. I'm even more glad that during times like these, I'm not on social media. One small sparks always starts a blazing forest fire on there. It doesn't matter if the news is good or bad, it all get blown out of proportion.

I'll admit I'm coming around on Bieniemy. But that's mostly the reality of him being the guy and me wanting him to succeed because that means the team succeeds. And the ultimate success on the field would be Howell turning into an NFL starting QB. That's step 1.

Bieniemy may not be the best thing since sliced bread but he brings a much better body of work to Washington than Scott Turner did.

If I were Rivera and desperate to keep my job, I would have made the exact same decision. The upside potential is far greater than the downside risk. Go bold or go home. Literally.

 

[Chris]

 

[burgold]

Everyone is fixated on the QB. To me, it's about the OLine. If we don't have the oline no QB or OC will succeed. Wondering what the fix will be. I guess one good thing might be that Bienemy may want a completely different oline anyway. If his scheme employs different tactics then the Turner guys might have needed to be phased out anyway. I'm guessing we need at minimum 3 new starters.

 

[Boone]

One of our biggest issues during the Rivera regime is that while the fanbase seems to recognize gaping holes in positional roster talent, the team seems to take the 'we're fine' approach. Look at how they've failed to address OL, LB, DBs... I mean we have glaring needs at some of the most critical positions and still.... 'we're fine'. Hopefully, a fresh set of eyes in Bienemy (and his reputation as someone who doesn't tolerate bullshit and is very direct) is helpful on that front.

'Ron - I don't know what in God's name Scott Turner was thinking, but this OL needs to be completely overhauled and I need a major commitment from you to make that our first priority'.

THAT is what we need. And a QB to work out

 

[Chris]

I always got the impression that Scott was mostly a concept/play design oriented coach but not much at being detail oriented or demanding of the inherent execution on the field.

Both Keim and Paulson have opined from watching practices that Turner was not much of an inspiring or demanding presence on the practice field. I expect that to change significantly for the players quickly.

 

[Boone]

To your point Chris - I don't think Rivera could've found an OC who was more the complete opposite of Scott Turner if he tried. And he may have been trying, lol. The Marine in me sort of relishes the wake up call our offensive starters are probably about to receive. I'm thinking he might be an 'on the sidelines' OC. It's hard to put a boot up someone's ass or hurl obscenities at them from the booth.

 

[burgold]

It's hard to put a boot up someone's ass or hurl obscenities at them from the booth.

That's what drones with tazers are for.

 

[Chris]

Must watch tv. I wonder if Ron will again mention that he is committed to running the ball 2/3 of the time.