KC Chiefs Kingdom Article: Eric Bieniemy Ruined the AFCC

[Best Williams Available]

https://ckedboard.medium.com/how-a-season-long-rift-between-patrick-mahomes-and-eric-bieniemy-ruined-the-afc-championship-35481f116513

 

This makes me happy (most of us) aren’t crazy and too high on our ourselves or our imaginary sway with OBD.

 

i think this is nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt by some super fans to blame Bieniemy to get him fired. The first third to half provides “context and insight” and tries to prove insider info, but comes off as reaching, unbelievable, and tin foil hat crazy to me. Sure some of these things may have happened, but it affected Pat so much he was unable to throw a football for two halves?

 

Anyway, relish in another teams misery.

Edited February 17, 2022 by Best Williams Available

[Richard Noggin]

The uniformity of the narrative presented (ZERO concession or complexity), and the absolute lack of concrete attribution for ALL evidence submitted, adds up to a polemic hit-piece that reads more like a conspiracy theory than the whistle-blowing reportage it wants us to see.

 

Maybe the unnamed authors are on to something, but this published compilation of hearsay, conjecture, and innuendo isn't a convincing presentation.

[MJS]

Hey, if there is really infighting going on like they claim, that sounds great to me. Keep it going.

[GunnerBill]

This strikes me a bit as fans doing what fans do - blame the coordinator. That is easier than blaming the Quarterback or the Head Coach 'cos your team is generally more locked into those guys. Coordinators are often the scapegoats. 

 

The article might be true but there isn't a single one of its claims that is corroborated by a second source. 

 

The main person to blame for the 2nd half of the AFCCG? It was Patrick Mahomes. 

Edited February 17, 2022 by GunnerBill

[stuvian]

It's hard to believe anyone who says they have inside sources. Sounds like some fans can't fathom that the Bengals outplayed and out coached the Chiefs.

[Doc Brown]

There's no way in hell Reid would allow a clause in Bienemy's one year contract that Bienemy calls all the plays.  This is a hit piece.

[davefan66]

First, If they were so worried about Bieniemy, then why let Kafka go to the Giants?

 

Seems ridiculous Reid would allow such behavior to cripple the team in the AFCC.  And then bring him back?   No way.

[Doc Brown]

2 minutes ago, davefan66 said:

First, If they were so worried about Bieniemy, then why let Kafka go to the Giants?

 

Seems ridiculous Reid would allow such behavior to cripple the team in the AFCC.  And then bring him back?   No way.

They couldn't prevent him from going to the Giants because it's a promotion but they certainly could've offered him the same role as offensive coordinator for the Chiefs.  I'm interested to see if players have anything to say about this article over the next couple of days.

[davefan66]

1 minute ago, Doc Brown said:

They couldn't prevent him from going to the Giants because it's a promotion but they certainly could've offered him the same role as offensive coordinator for the Chiefs.  I'm interested to see if players have anything to say about this article over the next couple of days.

That’s my point.  If Kafka was so respected and EB isn’t, why keep up the charade?  Let EB go and promote Kafka.

 

It will be interesting if the players say nothing and don’t have EB’s back.

[GunnerBill]

49 minutes ago, davefan66 said:

That’s my point.  If Kafka was so respected and EB isn’t, why keep up the charade?  Let EB go and promote Kafka.

 

It will be interesting if the players say nothing and don’t have EB’s back.

 

Meh. They should say nothing. It is a completely unverified blog post with no corroboration. They should just ignore it. If it was an SI piece or something like that then would be interesting to see the reaction. But this is no more than internet tittle tattle. 

[Rico]

1 hour ago, GunnerBill said:

This strikes me a bit as fans doing what fans do - blame to coordinator. That is easier than blaming the Quarterback or the Head Coach 'cos your team is generally more locked into those guys. Coordinators are often the scapegoats. 

 

The article might be true but there isn't a single one of its claims that is corroborated by a second source. 

 

The main person to blame for the 2nd half of the AFCCG? It was Patrick Mahomes. 

Yep. Total Rat meltdown.

[JMF2006]

2 hours ago, stuvian said:

It's hard to believe anyone who says they have inside sources. Sounds like some fans can't fathom that the Bengals outplayed and out coached the Chiefs.

 

They could have attended "high level meetings"  

BTW lets hope its real and the Chefs implode

[BuffaloBillyG]

The ending gives it away.

 

"Reid could turn to an old friend in Matt Nagy, who will actually check Andy and collaborate with the offensive coaching staff and listen to his players."

 

 

The writer of this piece was Matt Nagy. Guy's trying to find a job. 

 

Se riously though this whole thing reads like fan fiction.

[Low Positive]

There may be a sliver of truth to that. I saw Mahones arguing with someone going up the tunnel at halftime. It was a coach that I now realize was Bieniemy. Also, he did squeeze his helmet a lot in the second half. And we all saw Hill and Hardman arguing on the sidelines during the 3rd quarter because Romo pointed it out. My takeaway was that the Chiefs are a team with a lot of big personalities who point fingers when things go south. If they did indeed fall apart, why couldn’t it have happened a week earlier?

[CSBill]

On the other hand: Bieniemy has been the hot coordinator for the past 3 years. He has been the next guy who should be getting a head coaching job, right? But he has not. .... Why would Daboll be a better pick than him? Well, there might be some obvious reasons he's not been a serious candiate for a head coaching position. Interpersonal skills are important. Maybe, just maybe, that's why he's not a HC? .... If you go on merit, is there any other OC over the past few year ahead of him? Answer: No! So, why no HC opportunities???

[MAJBobby]

Nothing more than a Hit piece. 

50 minutes ago, CSBill said:

On the other hand: Bieniemy has been the hot coordinator for the past 3 years. He has been the next guy who should be getting a head coaching job, right? But he has not. .... Why would Daboll be a better pick than him? Well, there might be some obvious reasons he's not been a serious candiate for a head coaching position. Interpersonal skills are important. Maybe, just maybe, that's why he's not a HC? .... If you go on merit, is there any other OC over the past few year ahead of him? Answer: No! So, why no HC opportunities???

1.  His criminal background is an issue 

2.  Unlike this Hit piece wants to claim this is Andy Reid’s offense and calling. 
3.  Getting out of the Shadow of Reid can be difficult on the offensive side. 
4.  Also right wrong or indifferent Daboll gets credit for Josh’s development. Bienemy doesn’t it was Reid with Mahomes 

Edited February 17, 2022 by MAJBobby

[thenorthremembers]

I cant believe Bienemy told Mahomes to throw 3 ints,  what a jerk.

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

Read preamble of article.  Immediately think this guy is involved.

[Aussie Joe]

When they win it’s Andy Reid’s offense ..and the brilliance of Mahomes 

 

When they lose its Bieniemy to blame…

 

Mahomes played terrible in the second half of that game…

 

 

[Best Williams Available]

1 hour ago, CSBill said:

On the other hand: Bieniemy has been the hot coordinator for the past 3 years. He has been the next guy who should be getting a head coaching job, right? But he has not. .... Why would Daboll be a better pick than him? Well, there might be some obvious reasons he's not been a serious candiate for a head coaching position. Interpersonal skills are important. Maybe, just maybe, that's why he's not a HC? .... If you go on merit, is there any other OC over the past few year ahead of him? Answer: No! So, why no HC opportunities???

I’m in science, and if a postdoc interviewing for a faculty job doesn’t distinguish their ideas from their advisors (independence) they get passed over for someone who does. I suspect no one believes he designs or calls the plays fully.

[Mr. WEO]

1 hour ago, CSBill said:

On the other hand: Bieniemy has been the hot coordinator for the past 3 years. He has been the next guy who should be getting a head coaching job, right? But he has not. .... Why would Daboll be a better pick than him? Well, there might be some obvious reasons he's not been a serious candiate for a head coaching position. Interpersonal skills are important. Maybe, just maybe, that's why he's not a HC? .... If you go on merit, is there any other OC over the past few year ahead of him? Answer: No! So, why no HC opportunities???

 

The most obvious is that Reid is the playcaller.

[BuffaloBillyG]

The best part to me is the "headset conversation". 

 

Reid: “No, run this”

Bieniemy: “What the f---.”

Kafka: “We’re blowing this game.”

Mahomes: “Call the f------ play or I will.”

 

So, for some reason EB...who lives right next to Andy on the sideline had to have this exchange over a headset. And Kafka had to chime in for....reasons. Then the best part....somehow some way Mahomes was on the headset....didn't think the QB had a mic in the helmet to communicate back. And then the writer of the article I guess heard it and could report verbatim what was said. Maybe he picked up the conversation on his police scanner? Not sure. 

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

53 minutes ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

Maybe he picked up the conversation on his police scanner?

When you wear a tinfoil hat, you don't need a police scanner.

[Captain Hindsight]

1 hour ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

The best part to me is the "headset conversation". 

 

Reid: “No, run this”

Bieniemy: “What the f---.”

Kafka: “We’re blowing this game.”

Mahomes: “Call the f------ play or I will.”

 

So, for some reason EB...who lives right next to Andy on the sideline had to have this exchange over a headset. And Kafka had to chime in for....reasons. Then the best part....somehow some way Mahomes was on the headset....didn't think the QB had a mic in the helmet to communicate back. And then the writer of the article I guess heard it and could report verbatim what was said. Maybe he picked up the conversation on his police scanner? Not sure. 

Also, Mahomes can't speak back to them. This whole article, while it may have some merit, is lots of speculation

[billybob71]

Chiefs got beat and the golden god of QBs Mahomes didn't play well in the 2nd half, but as Chiefs fans our brains can't fathom this, so we look for conspiracy theories. 

[muppy]

3 hours ago, CSBill said:

On the other hand: Bieniemy has been the hot coordinator for the past 3 years. He has been the next guy who should be getting a head coaching job, right? But he has not. .... Why would Daboll be a better pick than him? Well, there might be some obvious reasons he's not been a serious candiate for a head coaching position. Interpersonal skills are important. Maybe, just maybe, that's why he's not a HC? .... If you go on merit, is there any other OC over the past few year ahead of him? Answer: No! So, why no HC opportunities???

Mr Bieniemy had a 9 year NFL career mainly in san diego. Remember Swami used to call him Eric "sleeping with" Bieniemy...haha.....his coaching career is a different ballgame. Hard to say why he has had no HC offers...

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Bieniemy

Edited February 17, 2022 by muppy

[Albwan]

Chiefs already have a superbowl. They will always have that.

[Rubes]

So the play called down near the goal line at the end of regulation was for Mahomes to ignore the open receiver, run backwards 10 yards, and fumble it?

 

[BADOLBILZ]

1 hour ago, Albwan said:

Chiefs already have a superbowl. They will always have that.

 

The Chiefs have won 2 Super Bowls.

 

Dude's talkin' about "always" and doesn't know this.   SMH

 

 

[Best Williams Available]

Homie’s account who posted this has disabled commenting. 
 

https://twitter.com/1_chiefskingdom/status/1494143245185523712?s=21

[GoBills808]

So it was Bienemy who tricked Mahomes into thinking they still had a timeout eh

[ndirish1978]

Bienemy also choreographs all of Jackson Mahomes' TikTok dances, oh you didn't know?

[zow2]

Kafka going to be the OC of the Giants was a blow to KC and hopefully will help bring the Chiefs down a notch.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

7 hours ago, CSBill said:

On the other hand: Bieniemy has been the hot coordinator for the past 3 years. He has been the next guy who should be getting a head coaching job, right?

 

He has been pointed at as an example, "why isn't this guy getting more looks, why ISN'T he the hot coordinator?"

 

It turns out there are several reasons, starting with a "rap sheet" as a college and NFL player and then young coach.  "That was Then, This is Now", but some of that stuff would honestly make a conservative owner give his candidacy a "side eye" unless he were being widely hailed as an offensive genius.....

 

....about that, there's a general perception that Reid is the main driving force behind the KC offense.  It may be true, it may not be true... and if it is, it begs the question why anyone who has ever had a cup of coffee with McVay or Kyle Shanahan gets the jobs

 

Then there's the failure of Matt Nagy in Chicago

 

Or there could be some other factor at play (which has entire other threads devoted to it)

 

 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

13 hours ago, Best Williams Available said:

https://ckedboard.medium.com/how-a-season-long-rift-between-patrick-mahomes-and-eric-bieniemy-ruined-the-afc-championship-35481f116513

 

This makes me happy (most of us) aren’t crazy and too high on our ourselves or our imaginary sway with OBD.

 

i think this is nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt by some super fans to blame Bieniemy to get him fired. The first third to half provides “context and insight” and tries to prove insider info, but comes off as reaching, unbelievable, and tin foil hat crazy to me. Sure some of these things may have happened, but it affected Pat so much he was unable to throw a football for two halves?

 

Anyway, relish in another teams misery.

 

The story has apparently been "deleted by author".

 

However it has been copied here, if folks insist.  Click on the "spoiler" button

 

https://www.chiefsplanet.com/BB/showpost.php?s=60f98814f0882458c4b46e4e5dcd0abb&p=16149947&postcount=278

 

To me it reads on a par with some of the Good People on this board who insist on bizarro world "grudge" ideas for McDermott refusing to let various offensive players play (or play more): Bates, McKenzie and other fine conspiracy-based theories

 

One of my favorite quotes:

Quote

Flash back to August 2020. Bieniemy made this statement about Patrick Mahomes:

“You guys have been around him — you know him,” said Bieniemy. “He’s a competitive prick. OK? He’s a great kid, but he’s a competitive prick. He wants to improve at everything he could possibly improve upon. He wants to be the best at whatever he can do. And along the way, he wants to make sure that he’s leading the guys, he wants to be held accountable by his peers, but also, too — he just wants to work. And that’s what you love about being around him every single day.”

 

I read that, and I see it as highly complimentary.  I imagine Bills players and coaches saying very similar things about Josh.  He may be "Big Goofy" or "Big Kid" (Dawkins, Feliciano) off the field, but they all say he is super-competitive about anything there is to be competitive about, be it basketball or table tennis or of course, Football.   They don't use the word "prick" in public, but probably would in private where those kind of insults can be "love talk" between friends along with "#######" "*****" "*****" or whatever the vocabulary of choice in that circle may be.

THE AUTHOR OF THIS ARTICLE SEES THE ABOVE QUOTE AS NEGATIVE!!!!!

Quote

There was nothing playful about this quote. According to our source, Bieniemy disliked the dynamics Mahomes brought to the offense because he felt it hurt his chances to become a head coach. His statement may have come across as a joke, but as with any joke told, there is always some truth hidden in the delivery.

 

There's nothing playful or joking about that quote, but you have to have a bizarro conspiracy mindset to view it as an expression of dislike.

[BuffaloBillyG]

1 minute ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

The story has apparently been "deleted by author".

 

However it has been copied here, if folks insist.

 

https://www.chiefsplanet.com/BB/showpost.php?s=60f98814f0882458c4b46e4e5dcd0abb&p=16149947&postcount=278

 

To me it reads on a par with some of the Good People on this board who insist on bizarro world "grudge" ideas for McDermott refusing to let various offensive players play (or play more): Bates, McKenzie and other fine conspiracy-based theories

 

 

Now here's a guy....

 

There are a lot of mixed reactions to Allbright...however he's confirming some to be true.

 

 

[corta765]

7 hours ago, FrenchConnection said:

There may be a sliver of truth to that. I saw Mahones arguing with someone going up the tunnel at halftime. It was a coach that I now realize was Bieniemy. Also, he did squeeze his helmet a lot in the second half. And we all saw Hill and Hardman arguing on the sidelines during the 3rd quarter because Romo pointed it out. My takeaway was that the Chiefs are a team with a lot of big personalities who point fingers when things go south. If they did indeed fall apart, why couldn’t it have happened a week earlier?

 

In my opinion when this stuff comes out there is absolutely some level of truth that comes out. Now whether is is 25% truth or 75% obviously has a distinction. But if you told me a team like you said with big personalities like the Chiefs whose offense all year was up and down had issues with Bieniemy I wouldn't be stunned nor with some of his coaching calls. To the level of the article? Probably not, but I can buy the frustration as it happens with any team when things are bad or go sideways.

[Patrick Duffy]

Lol, blame anyone BUT P. Mahomes because his veins are filled with perfection! 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

OK, another piece that doesn't make sense:

Quote

Unfortunately, those in-game moments where Mahomes is squeezing his helmet and receiving calls late, is due to multiple voices on the hot mic. This happened multiple times in 2021, and during the AFC Championship, it was chaotic, particularly before the final snap prior to halftime.

Nobody can say exactly when this happened but at one point during the AFC Championship, the following exchange took place after Bienemy called a play.

Reid: “No, run this”

Bieniemy: “What the ****.”

Kafka: “We’re blowing this game.”

Mahomes: “Call the ****ing play or I will.”

 

The author is writing as though this is a headset-mic exchange. 

 

However, the headset does not have a mic capability for the QB; the communication goes one way. 

 

It would also speak very poorly of the organizational and managerial abilities of Reid if he allows such an exchange whether on the mic or sidelines.  There isn't a lot of time.  There has to be a clear "chain of command" pre-established (who overrules whom) and there absolutely can not be irrelevant second guessing like "we're blowing this game" allowed in time critical situations.

 

So if an exchange like that took place, that's a poor look for Kafka and for Reid as much or more than Bienemy.

 

Me, a lot of the early-season problems with the Chiefs appeared to be Mahomes refusing to be patient and take the short underneath passes the D was allowing when they were doing the two-high-safety, rush-3 or 4, blanket the intermediate throws stuff, while Mahomes receivers were not doing him any favors as far as catching stuff they really should have been able to haul in (maybe the ball had too much "zip" on it, I don't know); also, Orlando Brown was taking a blocking angle suitable to a shorter drop than Mahomes was taking and mismatched to how Mahomes actually plays.

 

Then the question becomes "is the QB coachable on these points?" and "will the OL make adjustments?"

 

It appeared to me that at least some of the Chiefs 2nd half meltdown was Mahomes returning to his earlier season "let me run around like a headless chicken instead of taking the quick checkdown" form, though I will confess that I have not watched all-22

 

Question: if the article were correct, why would the Chiefs not offer the OC gig to Mike Kafka?

[Hapless Bills Fan]

44 minutes ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

Now here's a guy....

 

There are a lot of mixed reactions to Allbright...however he's confirming some to be true.

 

 

 

Yeah, I really don't have a good feel for how accurate overall Allbright has proven to be.

 

He's a Denver guy IIRC so he would potentially have sources who could confirm/deny the statement

Quote

Broncos GM George Paton asked Bieniemy point blank in his interview about a situation he saw while in Kansas City earlier this season. The answer from Bieniemy eliminated him from job contention.

 

I'm sure there's some truth to the notion that these guys were clashing at times, just as I'm sure there's some truth to the notion that Daboll and McDermott were clashing at times, but that doesn't mean it's some sort of ego-trip grudge match.  Bienemy "laid into his star QB for no reason".   I'd bet there was a reason, and it may have been a good reason, too.

 

And do play calls really specify which receiver is to get the ball?  I know plays specify routes for each receiver, and which route is the "answer" or "hot read" or the progression of reads, depending upon the defensive look, but to say "throw the ball to CEH over McKinnon" or "throw the ball to Robinson over Hardman" doesn't ring true to me.  (obviously the OC can specify which personnel are on the field for different plays)

 

And yeah, the end of the 2nd half did NOT do this:

Quote

On the last play before halftime, three feet and nearly two years of frustration wiped out a chance to secure Kansas City’s third straight Super Bowl berth.

The Chiefs were leading 21-10 at that point, and as a professional NFL QB, Mahomes had damned well better be able to keep track of timeouts.

 

One has to at a minimum, give the 3-and 6 aborted snap on the Chiefs 1st drive of the 3Q, the 2nd-and-3 interception by Mahomes that gave the Bengals the ball on the KC 27, and the KC defense's failure to stop a 6:23, 46-yd drive ending in a FG some credit for the wipeout.  Oh, and Mahomes INT in overtime should get honorable mention.

 

To pin the Chiefs AFCCG loss on the end of the 2nd half (when the Chiefs were leading) is just a "sorry, your Sanity Check just Bounced" take. 

 

The whole thing, frankly, reads as though it were written to exculpate Mahomes.