The latest New Heights episode contains multitudes.
The uber-popular podcast founded and hosted by Jason and Travis Kelce released a new episode on Wednesday, which means Kansas City Chiefs fans have plenty to take in from their favorite tight end. But a major part of the episode's discussion centers on the arrival of a new offensive coordinator for the Chiefs, and fans will have fun picking apart the layers involved.
On the surface, Kelce's comments about Eric Bieniemy are exciting (but there's much more than that). The man known as EB is a clear mentor and friend to Kelce after a decade together at Arrowhead. Bieniemy joined Andy Reid when he first arrived in Kansas City back in 2013 as his running backs coach. After five seasons, he was promoted to offensive coordinator when Matt Nagy left town to take a job as head coach for the Chicago Bears.
When asked about the return of Bieniemy, Kelce had only glowing reports for what he expected him to bring to the team.
"I love that s--t. I think it’s great. I think it’s a marriage that’s gonna pick up right where it left off. EB and who he is as a coach, you can see kinda his personality and what he brings to the table on that Chicago team," said Kelce.
Travis Kelce’s glowing praise for Eric Bieniemy on New Heights hints that he's ready for one more run in Kansas City.
"I know Ben Johnson has his own version of that. He’s a very tough guy, and what he did in Detroit, he brought over as well. You could see those running backs over in Chicago, and their body of work was definitely at Eric Bieniemy's style of football."
That in itself is very exciting, but a further listen to the conversation seems to point to Kelce's own future. It's felt all along that Kelce was positioned to return to the Chiefs for another year—even his teammate Chris Jones said he thought he had more in him—but no official announcement has been made. However, Kelce's own comments here make it sound as if he's ready to make another run with Bieniemy under Bieniemy's tutelage once again.
"I can’t wait to see him back in the building, man. He’s one of my favorite coaches of all time. He’s one of my favorite people of all time. I’ve had so many unbelievable growing moments under him as a player, as a person. I just love the guy. It’s gonna be awesome to see him back in the building and see him back wearing the Chiefs’ logo, baby."
Not only should the interview have Chiefs Kingdom excited about what Bieniemy might bring to the team, given the players' excitement for his return, but it also seems like it's even safer than ever to assume that Kelce will make it back for a 14th season with the franchise.