This year, Eric Bieniemy was in demand on the head coaching circuit once again. And, once again, Bieniemy did not emerge with a head coaching job. Still, the Chiefs offensive coordinator remains determined to eventually run his own ship. 
“I mean, that’s everybody’s dream to be one of the 32 head coaches. That’s everybody’s dream,” Bieniemy said (via ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher). “Someday, possibly, it may happen. But right now, the only thing that matters is making sure our guys, our players and our coaching staff is focused on the goal — and that’s making sure we play to the end of that final echo of the whistle come Sunday.”
Bieniemy drew interest from the Browns, Giants, and Panthers this offseason. Last year, he met with the Buccaneers, Bengals, and Dolphins (and turned down an interview with the Cardinals). The offensive guru has been in the running for at least six HC jobs in the last two cycles, but came away with none.
Given that Ron Rivera was the only minority candidate to land a head coaching job in this cycle, many have called for a revamp to the league’s Rooney Rule. For his part, Bieniemy says he’s keeping the focus on himself and his Super Bowl-bound squad.
“Every coach may have a different gripe about whatever comes up in their own organization,” Bieniemy said when asked whether minority assistant coaches were being treated unfairly on the whole. “But we all have an opportunity to do what we do…I love my job. I have no complaints in what I do and how I do it. I know one thing: When it’s all said and done with, we get to line up and play football. And that’s what I’m going to do. I’m a football coach.”
Time to start taking away first rounders from any team that won’t interview qualified minority candidates.
Then you just get more token interviews. I don’t think there’s an easy way to solve this. It’s a damn shame in a league that’s made up of mostly minority players that there’s so little opportunity for them to get head coaching gigs.
Why not just move the start of the playoffs back by one week. Let all interviews to be done that week.
I know this is probably a far fetched idea, but why not have an application process. All interested coaches who meet a set criteria apply. Then they interview and may the best candidate and fit win.
yeah, add teeth to a misguided rule. there is already no way to know who the league considers a minority, and making teams interview minority candidates will cause most minority interviews to be simply done to satisfy the role over actual interest. it may even cause owners to retaliate by hiring less minorities. no, theres no good outcome here.
There is a good outcome here. You make your list of potential candidates based on experience and what they will do to make your team a winner, not by the color of their skin or some stupid rule.
The traditional #1 requirement for the owners before the Rooney rule was the head coach must have 100% of his skin white.
Thats just ignorant. Plain ignorant.
The Rodney rule was made when no assistant or head coach was a minority. The NFL just recycles coaches and doesn’t want to hire from outside the circle.There is going to be a change in the next 10 years with many of the HC age out of football and new replacements get shots. The problem I have does the Rooney rule really work? 32 teams in the NFL as a business why would you hire an unknown to run your franchise.
Is this news though? It’s basically just saying a guy who has repeatedly been interviewing for a HC job actually wants to be a head coach.
before we cry foul for this guy not getting hired, lets consider the openings he was considered for – the Jags got a coach who has actually lead a team before, and Cleveland and New York are terribly run. he’ll probably be a prime candidate again next year, especially if he helps KC to a super bowl title this year.
I’ve always wondered what it be better to be the offensive coordinator on a winning team or be the head coach of the team that you know you’re going to get fired in two years
Cleveland isn’t as bad as people think.
You’re right they have one bad apple. Unfortunately it’s the one who can’t hire anybody at all.l and can’t be fired.
Theres some talent. No leadership to bring it to full circle. Lets see how this next 1 yeR regime brings. Im a huge kareem fan. Idiot, but a true talent.
Come on Ace it’s maybe the worst ran professional Team in all sports!
Such nonsense. Again, America is over 70% white. If all these “affirmation action” advocates want everything to be proportionate, that means 70% of the players, coaches, owners and fans need to be white. Need to restrict every team to the demographics of America. Otherwise, it’s just racist, anti white nonsense.
It’s only that high if you count Hispanics. And based on your comment, I bet you don’t want to be grouped with Hispanics.
75% of the players in the NFL are black. 100% of the owners are white.
And the color of money is the same for both.
Owners Shahid Khan and Kim Pegula said quit lying!
Wouldn’t it make more sense to implement the rule at the college level? Then more candidates would emerge in the job pool, or do most NFL coaches have no experience at the college level at some point?
The Chiefs blocked Mike Kafka from talking to the Eagles for an OC spot. Bold Prediction:
Chiefs beat 9ers, Reid retires, EB gets the HC job and Kafka goes to OC. Put it on the board.
Reid is not gonna retire after this season no matter what. He finally has the qb of his dreams to run his offense.
Not a stretch to believe there’s not a transition plan in place, jus sayin
I’ve always wished they would hold teams from making coaching hires until after the super bowl so all teams could consider the full pool at once. Feel like coaches for playoff teams get shorted sometimes because they’re not 100% free to interview. Don’t know if it would create a different outcome in this case either way though.
He just looks like a
Coach