Bad news struck the Kansas City Chiefs building as Eric Bieniemy‘s wife suffered a serious gunshot injury. With that said, head coach Andy Reid and the team are clearly supporting their offensive coordinator in this hard time.
Per Nate Taylor of ESPN, Andy Reid said the following, “Our hearts go out to Eric Bieniemy… Mia is stable, which is a plus… We all love EB and you hate seeing those things happen… Real life. You take care of that. She’s a saint, one of God’s good blessings. But things happen.“
Taylor also reported that Reid set no timetable for Bieniemy to return, as family is priority. In the meantime, Joe Bleymaier, who usually serves as the team’s pass game coordinator, will take over the offensive coordinator duties until Bieniemy returns.
Bleymaier is a well-known coach for the Chiefs
While Bieniemy attends his wife, Bleymaier will step up as the interim OC. Bleymaier has been with the Chiefs for a decade, joining the franchise in 2016 as the quality control coach.
Bleyamier’s duties and roles have changed a lot over the years, but he is a very well respected coach within the Chiefs confines. In fact, Bleymaier was one of the assistant coaches for the Chiefs given credit for helping them convert a 4th-and-1 play in the 2020 AFC Divisional Round that helped them advance into the next round of the playoffs.
Andy Reid is still at the helm
While the Chiefs are dealing with all this, the fact remains that the offense still relies heavily on the brain of Andy Reid, the head coach of the team. Reid has always been regarded as one of the best offensive minds in the NFL.
While he lets the OCs work and put their inputs into the Chiefs games, playcalling and concepts still run through Reid. As of now, the focus is on Bieniemy to be there for his wife, Reid and Bleymaier to plan on what’s ahead for the offense, and Patrick Mahomes to keep rehabbing his knee as he wants to get ready for Week 1.
