Andy Reid was ‘really hoping’ Eric Bieniemy would get head coach opportunity

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid spoke to the media on Wednesday to detail the team’s injuries and updates, and reporters asked him about the lack of head coaching opportunities for Eric Bieniemy for yet another year. Reid made it clear that he was “really hoping” that his offensive coordinator would have a chance to lead his own team heading into 2021.

Of course, the Chiefs are glad to have Bieniemy back in the fold for a fourth consecutive season as their offensive coordinator. Reid has always sung the praises of Bieniemy for years, and his players swear by him. Through that lens, the return of Bieniemy is a boost for a team that already enjoys significant advantages over most opponents in the NFL. That sort of organizational continuity is hard to find in any successful team, but the Chiefs didn’t lose a single coach or front office executive to new opportunities in 2021. They will be that much stronger going forward because of it.

That said, it’s sad that Bieniemy was somehow passed over for yet another round of head coaching vacancies in the NFL. For the New York Jets, they interviewed Bieniemy again after also talking to him in 2018 and yet they went with San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh instead. (They chose Adam Gase in ’18.) This year, several other teams also passed him over, including the Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions, Houston Texans, Atlanta Falcons, and Los Angeles Chargers.

Eric Bieniemy’s lack of job offers this offseason was frustrating to Andy Reid.

The same thing happened to Bieniemy last winter and the year before, although that earliest year made sense given how little time Bieniemy had spent in a coordinator role. Now, however, Bieniemy has 8 full seasons coaching alongside Reid including three as his offensive coordinator.

For now, Bieniemy is back in the fold and waiting on another year for the right opportunity to come his way. He will stay motivated yet humbled and hopeful for a chance next season. For now, however, the Chiefs are all the better for his return even if he deserved to fly on his own a long time ago.