Since 2018, when Kansas City promoted Eric Bieniemy from coaching the running backs to being the team’s offensive coordinator, the Chiefs’ offense became one of the best in the NFL.
Over the following three seasons, Kansas City has led an offensive showcase that has brought three straight AFC Championship appearances, and the team is currently hours away from potentially winning a second consecutive Super Bowl.
Bieniemy has shown over the past three seasons that he is more than qualified to take the next step and lead a team on his own right as a head coach in the NFL. Something that the 51-year-old assistant coach has yet to be afforded the chance to do thus far as a member of Andy Reid’s coaching staff.
The thing is, Bieniemy and the Chiefs were so convinced that he’d earn a head coaching gig by now that the two sides never bothered to so much as discuss the possibility of a new contract agreement that would extend past the 2020 season.
As the Chiefs gear up to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl 55, Eric Bieniemy will be coaching his final game as the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator under his current deal which, expires once the biggest game of the year comes to a close later this evening.
Typically, assistant coaches have a “rollover” year in their deals which, triggers automatically after the previous season ends but that’s not the case in regards to Bieniemy. Once the Super Bowl ends, Bieniemy is technically a free agent that is free to join any coaching staff of his choosing.
According to sources who are close to his contract situation, there was plenty of outside interest from other clubs who were looking to hire Bieniemy as an offensive coordinator. However, those teams were quickly made aware that Bieniemy, who loves Kansas City and working under Andy Reid, would only leave for a head coaching position.
That said, neither side is concerned about Bieniemy’s contract situation since the two sides are expected to reach a new contract agreement in the coming weeks.
The only issue is Bieniemy was passed up once again, which has left an outrage inside the black community and around the league.
“Eric [Bieniemy] is a damn good coach and there’s no reason why he should be excluded from our sidelines as an NFL head coach,” said Rod Graves, the executive director of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, told the Washington Post.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also expressed his disappointment that only two minority assistant coaches were hired to fill two of the seven open head coaching vacancies this off-season.
Bieniemy, who has expressed his desire to be a head coach, will now have to wait for the next heading-coaching hiring cycle to open up in early 2022. He has previously stated that he is looking for the right opportunity to come along but in the meantime, the Chiefs will enjoy having Bieniemy on the coaching staff for another season.
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