Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy had a very productive partnership in 2018. The offense they oversaw was by far the best in the league, and they helped Patrick Mahomes shatter records. Mahomes easily won the league's MVP award, and the unit was borderline unstoppable for most of the season.
As the coordinator of the league's best offense, Bieniemy naturally got some head coaching buzz this offseason. He didn't end up landing a job, but that will likely change in the near future if this Chiefs' offense keeps it up. This past season was Bieniemy's first year as coordinator, so perhaps other teams just wanted to see him get a little more experience first.
Eric Bieniemy hasn't been entrusted with play-calling duties like his predecessor Matt Nagy was, but he's not upset about it. Speaking to the media recently, Bieniemy emphasized that he's happy with the current arrangement, saying, “Here's my response about the playcalling: coach (Andy) Reid has always done it his way, and that's how historically he's done it because he's Coach Reid,” Bieniemy told ESPN.
“He has a beautiful mind, and we all work hand-in-hand together. And he gives me the green light to do a number of things. I have input. I do scripts. I get the install. There are a number of things that I do,” per Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.
Bieniemy is right that Reid has usually called his own plays, although he did depart from that strategy in 2017. Midway through the year he relinquished the duties to Nagy, and Nagy ended up landing a head coaching job the next offseason.
Nagy is hardly the only former Reid assistant to land a head job, as Reid's coaching tree continues to spread across the league. Recent Super Bowl winner Doug Pederson is a former Reid disciple, and it's likely only a matter of time before Bieniemy gets a shot at running a team.
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