Eric Bieniemy describes coming back to Kansas City as a homecoming. Fans can only hope his reinstallation as offensive coordinator after three seasons away also means a return to a high-octane offense after watching things stall in a frustrating year in which the Chiefs missed the playoffs.
The Chiefs introduced Bieniemy to reporters and fans during a press conference held on Wednesday to mark his return to Arrowhead. The veteran coach served on Ben Johnson's staff this season with the Chicago Bears, and in leaving the staff there, Bieniemy admitted it was "real, real tough making this decision" but described a chance to join Andy Reid once again as an opportunity to "return home."
"If Big Red ever picks up the phone, that’s the only person that you’ll say, ‘Hey, you know what? It may be time to return home because he’s given me this opportunity," said Bieniemy.
Bieniemy served as the Chiefs' running backs coach when he first arrived in Kansas City back in 2013, as part of the first iteration of an Andy Reid-led coaching staff. He spent five seasons in that post before earning a promotion to offensive coordinator when Matt Nagy departed to take over as head coach of the Chicago Bears.
Eric Bieniemy's introductory press conference made it clear that he's still going to emphasize the same things as his first stint with the Chiefs.
The Chiefs kept Bieniemy as OC for another five seasons, within which he went from red-hot interviewee for head coaching openings to a confusing cast-off. After watching half of the NFL (literally) pass him over in head coaching searches, Bieniemy accepted a lateral move to the Washington Commanders in order to serve as Ron Rivera's OC and perhaps build some cache with a new team.
Three years later, Bieniemy returns to the Chiefs on a bit of an ascent after a frustrating few years away from K.C. The short stint in Washington crumbled when Rivera was fired after the 2023 season, and Bieniemy lasted just as long with UCLA as their associate head coach. In '25, Bieniemy found himself demoted back to RB coach for the Bears, but catching on with a trending offense under Ben Johnson's leadership catapulted him back into coordinator consideration.
Those years away from the Chiefs allowed Bieniemy to pick up a few things in terms of fresh ideas, but he framed his gleanings as personal growth more than anything else, a chance to change his own approaches and communication tactics.
"I think [the time away] has helped me in a number of ways, because when you do it on your own, you’ve gotta find creative ways to implement a system. On top of that, you learn a lot about yourself—the good, the bad, and the ugly. All ideas are not bad ideas. We just need to be receptive to them. Just the dynamic of working with people, learning how to communicate and articulate your plan, getting them to buy in. I think all of that helps, and I think any experience that you’ve had, whether it’s good or bad, it’s all something that we can learn from," said Bieniemy.
While Bieniemy has picked up a few things during his years in the nation's capital and in Southern California, he also explained that he's still the same coordinator he was before, with the same points of emphasis. Judging by the responses of Chiefs' icons like Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, that's exactly what everyone was hoping for.
"There are some things about me that have changed, but more than anything, EB is EB," he said. "We will still be disciplined and detailed in everything and how we handle our business. There’s a standard of performance, there’s a standard of excellence that’ll be expected, but on top of that, there’s been a great deal of wealth that I’ve learned through the good and through the bad. That's the thing I appreciate that’s helped me to grow into this role and to give me an opportunity to be in this situation again."