The Kansas City Chiefs have brought back Eric Bieniemy to man their offensive coordinator role. It is a position that he held from 2018 to 2022. After a few years with Matt Nagy in that chair, the Chiefs decided to go with something they already knew to help out the offense.
Some Chiefs fans were hoping for a fresh face and new ideas with any Kansas City offensive coordinator hire. Yet, even as some dream scenarios and outside names seemed appealing, it was probably a bit naive to guess that Andy Reid would totally deviate into a completely new world.
As Reid has always said, he gets 51 percent of the vote for any offensive ideas. The Chiefs were honestly not that different in some offensive marks in 2025 compared to 2024, as laid out by Jesse Newell of The Athletic. In the end, a lack of explosives, an inconsistent run game, and less magic in close games led to the offensive issues this past season.
There is going to be some frustration with Bieniemy returning to the Kansas City sideline. That takes place with any move. Part of the fan base will like it. Others will continually despise the idea. But after the announcement of Bieniemy’s return, Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce reacted glowingly.
As much as fans want what they perceive is a perfect hire for Chiefs offensive coordinator, some K.C. fans who were wanting more are not alone in feeling a bit frustrated. Honestly, many of the early head coaching hires in this cycle have drawn their own levels of pushback.
A lot of fans are longing for that headline-grabbing announcement that they believe will make their coaching staff perfect. But in reality, many of the head coaching hires so far have come with plenty of familiarity and continuity. There is not much difference or deviation from teams that have hired a new head coach. That comes even in a year where it is arguably the wildest NFL coaching cycle in quite some time.
Dolphins go with Green Bay duo
The Miami Dolphins have a new pair at head coach and general manager entering 2026. Once they made Jon-Eric Sullivan their new GM, Jeff Hafley was seen as the frontrunner for the head coaching job. Eventually, Hafley was named the new Dolphins head coach.
Sullivan spent 22 seasons in the Green Bay Packers’ front office. Most recently, he was Green Bay’s vice president of player personnel for four years. Even though Hafley was not with the Packers as long as Sullivan was, the GM went with a head coach candidate who offers great familiarity.
Sullivan knows how Hafley operates. How he leads the new Dolphins roster is something Sullivan can easily envision after spending time with him over the last two years. It also helps that Hafley elevated Boston College as their head coach as much as he could in today’s evolving college football landscape.
The Hafley news was met with mixed reactions from Miami fans. However, it is easy to see two guys from Green Bay trying to emulate things in the classic Packers style.
Minter returns to Ravens
There are some differences between John Harbaugh and new Ravens head coach Jesse Minter. Harbaugh was more of a CEO, leader type, whereas Minter’s prowess comes as a defensive coordinator with designs on that side of the ball. But overall, Minter’s youth is similar to what Harbaugh offered coming into his Baltimore tenure. And of course, Minter has previous ties with the Ravens.
Minter worked under Harbaugh from 2017 to 2020. He was a defensive assistant before eventually working his way up to defensive backs coach. After his time with John Harbaugh, he worked under Jim Harbaugh with both the Michigan Wolverines and the Los Angeles Chargers. Minter held the title of defensive coordinator for all four combined seasons at those two stops with Jim.
Because of his past stint in Baltimore, it was not surprising to see the Ravens go with someone they already knew in Minter. There are huge shoes to fill in Baltimore, but with arguably the most consistently run organization for 20-plus years, it makes sense that the Ravens chose this path. Rather than going with a hotshot offensive guru, they went with someone who is smart defensively. The Ravens have lived off strong defenses for years, and with what they saw Minter add on their sideline already, they hope he improves a unit that was less fierce over the last couple of seasons.
Mike McCarthy heads home
Mike McCarthy is set to take over as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach after Mike Tomlin stepped down. McCarthy will return to the head coach seat after a year removed from the league. He has already been head coach of two iconic NFL franchises in Green Bay and Dallas. Now, he is set to lead one of the most old-school franchises in all of pro sports.
McCarthy is a Pittsburgh native. Outside of his family ties to the city, he and Steelers general manager Omar Khan worked together with the New Orleans Saints in 2000. And while nothing is set regarding Aaron Rodgers’ status for 2026, he and McCarthy could be reunited yet again in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers have typically hired younger options at head coach, dating back to Chuck Noll’s addition in 1969. But with McCarthy, there are many old-school principles that the Steelers will likely continue to cling to. As good and respected as Tomlin was, not adapting much to the modern game is part of what held Pittsburgh back in an above-average purgatory. It seems like the angst surrounding the McCarthy hire from Steelers fans is because they wanted someone with new, fresh ideas.
Coaching pendulum swings less than fans like
From time to time, franchises will go to an offensive head coach after having a defensive-minded leader running the show. The opposite will occur at times as well. But most of the time, NFL teams are not taking massive leaps to totally alter their course.
It is typical for individuals to go back to who they know and what they know in a relationship-based business. Some teams want to continue a large part of what their brand has produced for many years. Pittsburgh is a great example of that. In the end, there are simply more comfortable and easier courses of action by staying with or bringing back old friends.
From the Chiefs-Bieniemy side of things, it keeps Kansas City in a spot that offers collaboration and open ideas on offense. It will give K.C. no awkward barriers when needing to adjust and improve throughout the weeks of next season. That familiarity could simply give the Chiefs a nice launch point to build from, rather than completely starting over at square one with a franchise quarterback.