Eric Bieniemy has left the Washington Commanders after just one season as their offensive coordinator and will now become UCLA’s associate head coach and offensive coordinator
Eric Bieniemy, the man who helped make Patrick Mahomes ‘a better player’ at Kansas City Chiefs, is set to join UCLA as associate head coach and offensive coordinator.
The 54-year-old is returning to college football after a successful decade in the NFL, where he won two Super Bowls with the Chiefs. Mahomes has previously praised Bieniemy for improving his game, but he’s often been overlooked for head coach roles.
Bieniemy was recently considered for the head coach position at the Washington Commanders, but the job went to Dan Quinn. Yet he’s now excited to start his new role at UCLA, his first college football job since leaving Colorado in 2012.
“Southern California,” Bieniemy wrote in an email, as seen by ESPN. “I attended high school there. I started my career in the league here (with the Chargers). It’s obviously great to be back with the Bruins, where I was previously employed.”
Before becoming a coach, Bieniemy played in the NFL as a running back. He was drafted by the San Diego (now Los Angeles) Charges in 1991 and also played for the Cincinnati Bengals and Philadelphia Eagles. His coaching career began at Thomas Jefferson High School.
Bieniemy went back to college football to coach running backs at Colorado and UCLA, then he did the same job with the Minnesota Vikings. He got promoted to assistant head coach with the Vikings and had another time working with Colorado.
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He started coaching the running backs for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013 and became their main play-caller in 2018. He helped the Chiefs win two Super Bowls.
Bieniemy worked with Mahomes at the Kansas City Chiefs (
Image:
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Bieniemy moved to the Commanders to help head coach Ron Rivera as their offensive coordinator, but they both left after a tough season in 2023. Now Bieniemy is going back to college football with UCLA.
Mahomes has spoken very highly of Bieniemy in the past. The coach came under fire last year when Rivera suggested he was too intense in training, comments he later backtracked on. Yet Mahomes was keen to defend Bieniemy.
“EB is gonna be harsh on you,” Mahomes told reporters when asked. “He’s gonna try and get the best out of you every single day. He’s gonna hold you accountable when you don’t even wanna hold yourself accountable – and it made me a better player.”
Mahomes, who is now a three-time Super Bowl MVP, went on to say: “I think what he said that was the biggest thing was he’s your No.1 supporter. He will go to war with you just like any other guy on your team and you gotta know that.”
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story.
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