Awesome again Mark, my only question from this - and I’m not sure you’ll know the answer - is how much of the structure and meticulous preparation (which provides that stable structure from which the Kansas City offense is able to devastate defenses) comes from a figure like Bienemy and how much comes from the other members of staff, coaches and assistants and the like? Is there a likelihood of any changes with the peripheral coaches when Washington eventually hires a new OC? Will they bring their guys with them?
Yeah, I think that’s the big question that you’d need to do the interview and other homework to find out. It’s impossible to know from the outside how much of that success and structure comes from Bieniemy. I think the fact he’s interviewed for about 10 HC jobs and not got any of them is a sign that something is up, or at least that other teams also have the doubts about how much he is involved.
What we do know is Andy Reid speaks very highly of him to anyone that will listen and Rivera is someone that will always listen to Reid. So there is a connection there.
I think in a normal year, any OC would want to bring their own staff with them. But new staff requires firing the old staff, paying those contracts, and then hiring the new staff. An NFL team can easily afford that, but they need the owner to sign off on it. It could be considered a minor expense for someone like Snyder, but if he’s selling the team he might not want any expenses, we don’t know.
But there could well be a case where some staff choose to move on or retire or simply are out of contract. We know Scott Turner signed an extension last year, suggesting he may have been close to the final year of his contract, but we don’t know if anyone else got an extension or if other contracts might be up. So there’s potential that they have to hire people anyway. I think Rivera would ideally keep certain coaches he knows well (Matsko, for example), but I’d imagine Bieniemy or any new OC will get his say on adding at least one or two of his own guys
Great article. The answer is no one knows what EB would do so he represents more of a risk than someone like Shurmur who has a proven record with young Qbs. And again, only Mahomes is Mahomes
But if I am EB, a 1 year deal is perfect because being a HC is the real goal. And short of a disaster like the Jets were this past year, EB will likely be able to parlay the Cs job into proof he is up for the step to HC. Also Howell is so young as a starter that no one expects him to look like Mahomes, but if he does look like he is breaking out, again, EB will certainly get a lot of credit. So it is pretty much a no-lose proposition unless the offense looks unprepared, confused, or sloppy
The loser if EB comes him is likely Zampese
I doubt if EB won’t bring his own Qb coach
I assume Matsko is deft enough to teach whatever line scheme EB needs, provided we get him the players. So focus on the OL is one thing that has to happen, one way or the other
My own preference is still Shurmur but it would be interesting to see what EB brings, besides a real chip on his shoulder for having been passed over so many times
...... and finally, I love KCs use of the TE. Yes, only Kelce is Kelce but I hope we draft another guy or sign someone like Schultz or Giesecki who has a proven record as a solid receiver
Yep. People gave me some backlash on twitter over the weekend for suggesting I’d be willing to draft at TE in the 1st. I have no idea what TEs are available in this draft class yet, so I dunno if the right kinda guy is there, but a true No.1 TE adds a huge amount to an offense so that would absolutely be worth the 16th pick in my mind.
It will depend upon what happens at the start of free agency. If they call strongly at signing guys who are multi year fixes for the O line then it opens up the possibility of using the top pick for another position. But the draft is always an uncertain commodity and over decades it seems as though most of the truly great TEs have come from the 2-5 rounds. Guys like Kelce, Witten, Kittle almost always come from day 2/3. Even Reed who was the most skilled player we have had there in a long time. I don’t even know if there is a TE consensus to go in round 1 so far. Still I would be very surprised if it wasn’t OL or Cb given the obvious need there
He’s got the highest upside of any of the candidates because the success the Chiefs have had is undeniable and he’s clearly been at least some part of that. But the risk is we don’t know exactly how much. Shurmur might be a safer, higher floor candidate but the Ceiling would be lower too.
Great post Mark. Two questions...First why would the Washington OC job be enticing to Bieniemy? It could be a one and done job if the new potential owner guts the staff and/or if the Commanders fail to make the playoffs again. There are major questions at the QB spot and the team isn't in position to draft one high or land one of the top guys that are or might be available? Would it be a potential upgrade in title (Assistant HC) or the ability to call plays?
Second question, do you think that Rivera has some indication that Bieniemy is interested in the job here? Would he continue to wait on Bieniemy without knowledge that he would actually consider taking the job?
To the first question, the enticing part is the ability to call plays and get out from the shadow of Reid and Mahomes. Clearly he’s not going to get a HC job while working in KC or he’d have got it already by now. So taking the step to leave the Chiefs and go elsewhere in general makes sense.
Why Washington in particular? That’s a harder one to answer. Obviously theres the Rivera/Reid connection, so that probably plays a factor. They also have a bunch of talented players at skill positions (McLaurin, Dotson, Samuel, Gibson, Robinson etc etc). With an offseason dedicated to building the OL, QB remains the main outstanding question mark but that’s gonna be the case wherever he goes. Maybe he likes Howell’s potential or maybe they can promise him to go after a vet like Carr or whoever his preferred choice might be. But if he likes the potential of a guy like Howell and has all that talent at WR, if he can have success this year with that talent then he lines himself up for a HC job. The market here in Washington is huge and if he has success here, he can be set up for a while.
And potentially that could be here in Washington too. In a years time, if the new owner fires Rivera but Bieniemy shows he can develop Howell into a productive NFL QB, then that would put him at the top of the list to replace Rivera. Plus he’d have the season to get to know the new owner and see if he likes the situation.
To your second question, I have no inside info on if they have an indication on that. I’d be surprised if Rivera hadn’t used his relationship with Reid to kinda, bridge the gap and figure out if Bieniemy would be at least interested. I know the reports from insiders around the league suggest that a lot of people assume Bieniemy will the guy that gets the job, so that suggests there is some mutual interest. I also believe Ben Standig at the Athletic reported he’s heard there is mutual interest. So I’d imagine there is some indication he’d be interested otherwise, as you said, I don’t think Rivera would have waited this long.
This is awesome work Mark, thanks so much! Your ability to break this stuff down is super impressive.
It seems like Bieniemy will come down to ether Washington or Baltimore. Am I crazy to think the Washington job is a more enticing job than the Ravens? Both teams have their question marks at QB at the moment, but I’d give Washington the nod at skill position with their combination of WRs, RBs, and TEs. OL is really the only position that needs bolstering and they seem to be committed at fixing that. Stability within the organization is the other concern but like you’ve mentioned, if he does well he could end up just taking over as the HC.
It’s hard to know how he’d see it. Both teams do have positives and negatives.
Washington positives:
-great set of WRs
-Good RBs
-plenty of resources ready to invest in OL
Washington negatives:
-OL needs rebuilding
-QB situation (maybe he likes Howell, but nobody knows. Certainly not a settled situation regardless)
-Likely a 1-year deal with ownership situation. (Of course, there is a chance that he could be kept on of he develops Howell, but just as likely -if not more so- that a new owner will just want his own guy at GM/HC/QB)
Ravens positives:
-Chance to work with Lamar Jackson. Yes his contract situation doesn’t make that a certainty. But if he gets reassurances that Lamar is staying, then Lamar instantly makes Ravens job way more appealing/most likely to land him a HC job in future.
-OL/TEs is a nice group. Bateman isn’t a bad WR either. Some FA WRs might be more interested now Greg Roman is gone.
-Organisational stability. Staff and front office been set there for years, unlikely that will all change. So he could have a chance to build an offense for more than just a year and really prove himself as a legit HC candidate rather than an almost certain 1-year prove it deal in Washington.
Baltimore negatives:
-Lamar contract situation is up in the air. Reports of them being $100m apart on guaranteed money is a pretty huge gap. If Jackson is tagged and traded, that job becomes instantly less appealing, though they would also have then have the ammo to potentially go up in the draft and land a top QB there (or maybe sign a guy like Derek Carr).
-If -and a big if- Bieniemy sees Lamar as having to run a certain style of offense, like how Roman did, then perhaps he feels that would limit what he could do offensively. But I’d be shocked if Bieniemy felt that way.
-lacks the talent at skill positions that Washington has.
I think Baltimore would most likely be the more appealing job to Bieniemy, but I think Baltimore also could attract some other candidates that might well be better than him. That job feels like it would be a genuine interview and if he struggles (reports are he doesn’t interview well), then they’d go in another direction. The feeling I get from Rivera is he’s waiting to be allowed to talk to Bieniemy and essentially is ready to just offer him the job straight away. Rivera is close with Andy Reid and so I suspect that connection will have already been enough to convince Rivera to want him.
Awesome again Mark, my only question from this - and I’m not sure you’ll know the answer - is how much of the structure and meticulous preparation (which provides that stable structure from which the Kansas City offense is able to devastate defenses) comes from a figure like Bienemy and how much comes from the other members of staff, coaches and assistants and the like? Is there a likelihood of any changes with the peripheral coaches when Washington eventually hires a new OC? Will they bring their guys with them?
Keep up the good work Mark, from a fellow Brit,
Rob
Yeah, I think that’s the big question that you’d need to do the interview and other homework to find out. It’s impossible to know from the outside how much of that success and structure comes from Bieniemy. I think the fact he’s interviewed for about 10 HC jobs and not got any of them is a sign that something is up, or at least that other teams also have the doubts about how much he is involved.
What we do know is Andy Reid speaks very highly of him to anyone that will listen and Rivera is someone that will always listen to Reid. So there is a connection there.
I think in a normal year, any OC would want to bring their own staff with them. But new staff requires firing the old staff, paying those contracts, and then hiring the new staff. An NFL team can easily afford that, but they need the owner to sign off on it. It could be considered a minor expense for someone like Snyder, but if he’s selling the team he might not want any expenses, we don’t know.
But there could well be a case where some staff choose to move on or retire or simply are out of contract. We know Scott Turner signed an extension last year, suggesting he may have been close to the final year of his contract, but we don’t know if anyone else got an extension or if other contracts might be up. So there’s potential that they have to hire people anyway. I think Rivera would ideally keep certain coaches he knows well (Matsko, for example), but I’d imagine Bieniemy or any new OC will get his say on adding at least one or two of his own guys
Great article. The answer is no one knows what EB would do so he represents more of a risk than someone like Shurmur who has a proven record with young Qbs. And again, only Mahomes is Mahomes
But if I am EB, a 1 year deal is perfect because being a HC is the real goal. And short of a disaster like the Jets were this past year, EB will likely be able to parlay the Cs job into proof he is up for the step to HC. Also Howell is so young as a starter that no one expects him to look like Mahomes, but if he does look like he is breaking out, again, EB will certainly get a lot of credit. So it is pretty much a no-lose proposition unless the offense looks unprepared, confused, or sloppy
The loser if EB comes him is likely Zampese
I doubt if EB won’t bring his own Qb coach
I assume Matsko is deft enough to teach whatever line scheme EB needs, provided we get him the players. So focus on the OL is one thing that has to happen, one way or the other
My own preference is still Shurmur but it would be interesting to see what EB brings, besides a real chip on his shoulder for having been passed over so many times
...... and finally, I love KCs use of the TE. Yes, only Kelce is Kelce but I hope we draft another guy or sign someone like Schultz or Giesecki who has a proven record as a solid receiver
Yep. People gave me some backlash on twitter over the weekend for suggesting I’d be willing to draft at TE in the 1st. I have no idea what TEs are available in this draft class yet, so I dunno if the right kinda guy is there, but a true No.1 TE adds a huge amount to an offense so that would absolutely be worth the 16th pick in my mind.
It will depend upon what happens at the start of free agency. If they call strongly at signing guys who are multi year fixes for the O line then it opens up the possibility of using the top pick for another position. But the draft is always an uncertain commodity and over decades it seems as though most of the truly great TEs have come from the 2-5 rounds. Guys like Kelce, Witten, Kittle almost always come from day 2/3. Even Reed who was the most skilled player we have had there in a long time. I don’t even know if there is a TE consensus to go in round 1 so far. Still I would be very surprised if it wasn’t OL or Cb given the obvious need there
He’s got the highest upside of any of the candidates because the success the Chiefs have had is undeniable and he’s clearly been at least some part of that. But the risk is we don’t know exactly how much. Shurmur might be a safer, higher floor candidate but the Ceiling would be lower too.
Great post Mark. Two questions...First why would the Washington OC job be enticing to Bieniemy? It could be a one and done job if the new potential owner guts the staff and/or if the Commanders fail to make the playoffs again. There are major questions at the QB spot and the team isn't in position to draft one high or land one of the top guys that are or might be available? Would it be a potential upgrade in title (Assistant HC) or the ability to call plays?
Second question, do you think that Rivera has some indication that Bieniemy is interested in the job here? Would he continue to wait on Bieniemy without knowledge that he would actually consider taking the job?
To the first question, the enticing part is the ability to call plays and get out from the shadow of Reid and Mahomes. Clearly he’s not going to get a HC job while working in KC or he’d have got it already by now. So taking the step to leave the Chiefs and go elsewhere in general makes sense.
Why Washington in particular? That’s a harder one to answer. Obviously theres the Rivera/Reid connection, so that probably plays a factor. They also have a bunch of talented players at skill positions (McLaurin, Dotson, Samuel, Gibson, Robinson etc etc). With an offseason dedicated to building the OL, QB remains the main outstanding question mark but that’s gonna be the case wherever he goes. Maybe he likes Howell’s potential or maybe they can promise him to go after a vet like Carr or whoever his preferred choice might be. But if he likes the potential of a guy like Howell and has all that talent at WR, if he can have success this year with that talent then he lines himself up for a HC job. The market here in Washington is huge and if he has success here, he can be set up for a while.
And potentially that could be here in Washington too. In a years time, if the new owner fires Rivera but Bieniemy shows he can develop Howell into a productive NFL QB, then that would put him at the top of the list to replace Rivera. Plus he’d have the season to get to know the new owner and see if he likes the situation.
To your second question, I have no inside info on if they have an indication on that. I’d be surprised if Rivera hadn’t used his relationship with Reid to kinda, bridge the gap and figure out if Bieniemy would be at least interested. I know the reports from insiders around the league suggest that a lot of people assume Bieniemy will the guy that gets the job, so that suggests there is some mutual interest. I also believe Ben Standig at the Athletic reported he’s heard there is mutual interest. So I’d imagine there is some indication he’d be interested otherwise, as you said, I don’t think Rivera would have waited this long.
Great insight as always! Thanks Mark.
This is awesome work Mark, thanks so much! Your ability to break this stuff down is super impressive.
It seems like Bieniemy will come down to ether Washington or Baltimore. Am I crazy to think the Washington job is a more enticing job than the Ravens? Both teams have their question marks at QB at the moment, but I’d give Washington the nod at skill position with their combination of WRs, RBs, and TEs. OL is really the only position that needs bolstering and they seem to be committed at fixing that. Stability within the organization is the other concern but like you’ve mentioned, if he does well he could end up just taking over as the HC.
It’s hard to know how he’d see it. Both teams do have positives and negatives.
Washington positives:
-great set of WRs
-Good RBs
-plenty of resources ready to invest in OL
Washington negatives:
-OL needs rebuilding
-QB situation (maybe he likes Howell, but nobody knows. Certainly not a settled situation regardless)
-Likely a 1-year deal with ownership situation. (Of course, there is a chance that he could be kept on of he develops Howell, but just as likely -if not more so- that a new owner will just want his own guy at GM/HC/QB)
Ravens positives:
-Chance to work with Lamar Jackson. Yes his contract situation doesn’t make that a certainty. But if he gets reassurances that Lamar is staying, then Lamar instantly makes Ravens job way more appealing/most likely to land him a HC job in future.
-OL/TEs is a nice group. Bateman isn’t a bad WR either. Some FA WRs might be more interested now Greg Roman is gone.
-Organisational stability. Staff and front office been set there for years, unlikely that will all change. So he could have a chance to build an offense for more than just a year and really prove himself as a legit HC candidate rather than an almost certain 1-year prove it deal in Washington.
Baltimore negatives:
-Lamar contract situation is up in the air. Reports of them being $100m apart on guaranteed money is a pretty huge gap. If Jackson is tagged and traded, that job becomes instantly less appealing, though they would also have then have the ammo to potentially go up in the draft and land a top QB there (or maybe sign a guy like Derek Carr).
-If -and a big if- Bieniemy sees Lamar as having to run a certain style of offense, like how Roman did, then perhaps he feels that would limit what he could do offensively. But I’d be shocked if Bieniemy felt that way.
-lacks the talent at skill positions that Washington has.
I think Baltimore would most likely be the more appealing job to Bieniemy, but I think Baltimore also could attract some other candidates that might well be better than him. That job feels like it would be a genuine interview and if he struggles (reports are he doesn’t interview well), then they’d go in another direction. The feeling I get from Rivera is he’s waiting to be allowed to talk to Bieniemy and essentially is ready to just offer him the job straight away. Rivera is close with Andy Reid and so I suspect that connection will have already been enough to convince Rivera to want him.
Makes a lot of sense. Thanks again Mark!