Eric Bieniemy Is Back, and the Chiefs' Offense Already Feels the Difference
One week into OTAs, it is already clear that Eric Bieniemy's return is more than just a familiar face on the sideline.
When Eric Bieniemy’s return as Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator was announced in January, it was met with mixed reactions throughout Chiefs Kingdom and the media.
Inside the locker room, though, the reception has been anything but mixed, and nobody spoke to Bieniemy’s impact more pointedly than Patrick Mahomes.
“There’s a standard that you have to practice with, and you have to play with,” Mahomes said. “He’s (Bieniemy) going to hold you to that standard, no matter who you are. From the first guy to the 90th guy right now, he’s going to hold you to that standard. I think that’s something; it’s hard to replicate, I think that’s the best way to say it.”
He added that the impact is felt well beyond the practice field. “That first meeting had me wanting to run through a brick wall,” Mahomes said. “It had me ready to go.”
Following Matt Nagy’s departure, some viewed it as more of the same. It was not an unfair reaction on its face, but there is a distinct difference between the two.
Nagy had been the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator from 2013 to 2017 before returning in 2022 and taking over the play-calling duties in 2023, following Bieniemy’s departure from his initial stint as OC from 2018 to 2022. In his second run, the offense peaked at ninth in the league and finished 16th and 20th over the past two seasons.
Many factors were out of Nagy’s control, including an unstable wide receiver group and Travis Kelce’s slight decline, and it should be noted that his offense won a Super Bowl and reached another. But there is no doubt it had grown stale.
For much of Bieniemy’s first tenure, wide receiver Tyreek Hill and Kelce were in their prime, and the offense was truly elite. That does, however, include one season in which Kansas City ranked first in the NFL, with JuJu Smith-Schuster as the team’s number-one wide receiver. The Chiefs won two Super Bowl rings and never finished worse than fifth during that stretch.
Then there is what Bieniemy did most recently. The Chicago Bears finished 11-6 and made the playoffs for the first time since 2020. The caveats are that this was Ben Johnson’s offense and Bieniemy was fresh off two poor seasons at the Washington Commanders and UCLA.
That said, the Bears rose from 25th to third in rushing yards per game last season, and that is where Bieniemy has always cut his teeth. He got the most out of Adrian Peterson in Minnesota, Jamaal Charles, Kareem Hunt, and Damien Williams in Kansas City, and that did not change in Chicago.
D’Andre Swift rushed for a career-high 1,087 yards and nine touchdowns, but the most underreported storyline was getting 783 yards out of seventh-round rookie running back Kyle Monangai. In Week 13 against the Philadelphia Eagles, both backs crossed the 100-yard mark.
With the addition of Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker and fifth-round rookie Emmett Johnson, the Big Ten rushing leader, Bieniemy could provide a similar impact in Kansas City. It will likely be to a lesser degree, given how advanced Mahomes is over a quarterback like Caleb Williams and given that Reid has traditionally led a pass-heavy offense.
A legitimate rushing threat helps all areas of an offense. The Bears’ elite rushing attack last season helped shield Williams from pass rushers, limiting him to 24 sacks. The Chiefs have a potentially elite offensive line, and if defenses are forced to respect the run, they will not be able to pin their ears back nearly as much.
Chicago also ranked second in the NFL with 127 explosive plays, defined as runs of 10 or more yards and passes of more than 20 yards. Balance goes a long way, and Bieniemy is not afraid to insist on it.
Mahomes noted early in OTAs that Bieniemy has already made an impact on the schematic side as well.
“He has brought in a lot of concepts and a lot of things that I’ve really liked that we’ve added in now,” Mahomes said to reporters. “It’s good to have him back in the building and having that energy back.”
Beyond the run game, there is Bieniemy’s presence itself. Head coach Andy Reid made that clear when asked about what the new coaching staff has brought to the team.
“EB (Bieniemy) brings great energy. I mean, he knows everything (in the offense). He’s got it all down, and he can coach any spot and does a great job with it,” Reid said to reporters.
When asked if he feels the energy Bieniemy and new wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea bring to practice, Reid did not hesitate.
“Yeah, I think they love what they’re doing, and they’re not afraid to express that,” Reid said. “Players feel it. I think that’s healthy, and I think that discipline on offense is very, very important.”
Mahomes also noted that the younger players have not yet seen Bieniemy at his most demanding, suggesting the real test is still ahead.
“They still haven’t seen EB yet,” Mahomes said. “I’m not going to say he’s taking it easy; he’s pushing the guys, but he holds them to a standard. They haven’t had those days. It’s usually training camp when guys get tired, and they lose that will to finish and do all the exact right things, and that’s when EB’s going to hold you to that standard. We haven’t gotten there yet, but as long as you keep having good practices, we can prolong that as long as possible.”
Reading between the lines of what Reid, Mahomes, and Pro Bowl right guard Trey Smith had to say, it sounds as though the accountability and attention to detail may have been missing over the past few seasons. It is unfair to blanket-blame Nagy for it, but it is fair to call it a strength of Bieniemy.
Smith summed it up as simply as anyone.
“Get it together, or he’ll get you together,” Smith said. “He’s going to coach you hard, but it’s coming out of a place of love.”
When the likes of Reid, Mahomes, and the Kelces of the world have accomplished as much as they have, it matters to have someone in the room who not only challenges them, but thrives off of doing so.
That can only help younger veterans like wide receivers Xavier Worthy and Rashee Rice, too. It is just OTAs, but it appears the Bieniemy effect is already radiating through the locker room.