Black head coaching candidates filled three vacant NFL head coach positions this offseason, a significant step towards racial equality amongst the NFL coaching ranks. Former Kansas City Chiefs and Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy was not a part of that list.
And this has led to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith declaring that Bieniemy may be the problem.
Bieniemy has long been a candidate for an NFL head coaching gig dating back to his days as the Chiefs OC, seemingly playing a significant role in the team’s offensive success on two separate Super Bowl-winning teams.
This past season as the Commanders’ offensive coordinator essentially put a nail in the coffin of those hopes, as the team had a bottom-ten offense in nearly every offensive statistic last year en route to a 4-13 record on the year.
This prompted Bieniemy to return to the collegiate coaching ranks, accepting a job on Sunday to become the new offensive coordinator for the UCLA Bruins.
On Tuesday, Stephen A. Smith discussed Bieniemy’s new coaching job on his podcast, detailing that he is “done defending” Bieniemy after yet again missing out on an NFL coaching job with all the other Black candidates getting hired this offseason.
“I have spent years lamenting the state of affairs when it comes to the state of affairs as it pertains to the National Football League and Black coaches,” said Smith on the Stephen A. Smith Show. “I have spent years coming to the defense of Eric Bieniemy. Not anymore. Can’t do it anymore. When I think about Eric Bieniemy, I think about how Demeco Ryans got the job in Houston and Mike McDaniels, who is bi-racial in Miami. I think about Mike Tomlin, who has been in Pittsburgh for 17 years. Think about Todd Bowles, guys like this.
“I’m just looking at some of this stuff and saying to myself, What am I supposed to say for Eric Bieniemy at this point? He has been interviewed at least 15 times for 14 different head coaching jobs. And not one time has he walked away with the job. At some point in time, it has to be you. I’m not questioning his football acumen; I’m not questioning his resume. I’m saying that during the interview process, something has to be you if you have gotten 15 different interviews from 14 different franchises. And other Blacks have been hired and not you. The reality is that the NFL is hiring Black coaches now. They just aren’t Eric Bieniemy. I don’t know the answer to that question, but I do know this. I can’t imagine that his aspirations for being a head coach at the NFL level, the chances of that have increased because you decided to part with the NFL altogether to go take an offensive coordinator’s job at the collegiate level.
“Had you gone to UCLA and taken the head coaching job, had you gone to a college program and taken a head coaching job, that would be different. But to leave the NFL to go to college for the same position, I don’t know what to say anymore; I don’t know what to say.
Despite his experience and numerous interviews for NFL head coaching positions, Bieniemy’s path to landing a head coach role remains unclear.
As Smith alluded to, he has been passed over for various head coaching opportunities despite his qualifications.
His return to UCLA, where he coached before the NFL, could be due to his familiarity with the program rather than a clear path to a head coaching position.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.