Ranking Eric Bieniemy’s potential head coaching destinations
By Jake Kokoris
Let’s rank potential head coaching destinations for Eric Bieniemy.
While playoff season is upon us, we are also in the thick of Eric Bieniemy season. The Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator has garnered interest from the majority of teams with head coaching vacancies. These six vacancies include the Lions, Jaguars, Falcons, Texans, Chargers, and Jets.
Today we’re going to rank the potential landing spots for Bieniemy. As is always the case with these lists, they are totally subjective and will probably spawn a decent amount of disagreement. I ranked the destinations based on the likelihood that Bienemy could A.) compete in year 1, and B.) have sustained success with the given team. But without further adieu, let’s ranking the possible destinations for our beloved offensive coordinator.
6. Detroit Lions
There’s just so much uncertainty with the Lions. For starters, there’s some question about the Lions’ long-term answer at QB. While Matthew Stafford is under contract for the next few years, he will be entering his 13th season, so one has to wonder if the Lions are at least contemplating a succession plan for the near future.
The Lions could feasibly be a rebuilding team or could very well be a team in win-now mode. On the one hand, they’re coming off a brutal 5-11 season, and Pro Football Focus ranks them 30th in the NFL for overall team grade. On the other, a healthy Stafford, Kenny Golladay, and upstart running back D’Andre Swift are some nice offensive pieces, and perhaps sufficient pieces to compete next year. In other words, I think the Detroit job comes with a lot of uncertainty, and the direction of the team will likely depend on the direction the front office chooses.
The Lions are below average on defense, heightening the difficulty in playing Aaron Rodgers and the Packers twice a year. The Vikings should be more consistent next year, and the Chicago Bears, for all the chatter about them, are a playoff team with an excellent defense. So, the NFC North is far from a cake-walk even if the Lions offense returns healthy next season. Now, as with many other teams on this list, the Lions are also searching for a GM. So, much of the success of Bieniemy in Detroit rides on the competence of that GM hire. But as of now, I view the Lions as a team with too many question marks in the future.
On the bright side, the Lions’ decision to part ways with Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn is a sign that ownership is committed to crafting a winning organization. In the end, the Lions do not offer the kind of upside of other teams on this list, and because of that, I have them at #6.