Robert Griffin III didn’t mince words when speaking about Eric Bieniemy not being head coach after leaving Kansas City for Washington. On Monday, it was announced by Dan Quinn that Bieniemy has been fired by the Commanders per a report by ESPN.com’s John Keim. Quinn made the announcement in his introductory press conference and said that he spoke with Bieniemy personally. Kliff Kingsbury will now serve as the offensive coordinator for the team
“We won’t work together here [but] I wanted him to know I really respect the work he’s done. I wish him nothing but the best,” Quinn said.
Kiem noted that multiple sources expressed dissatisfaction with Bieniemy’s leadership, while the offense faced ongoing struggles for several years. The Commanders ranked 25th in scoring and 24th in yards, performing worse than the previous season.
Adding to the challenges, a team source revealed that late in the year, Bieniemy’s preference for passing the ball further compounded the issues. In fact, Washington led the league with 636 pass attempts this season. It’s worth noting that the offensive struggles were not new, as Washington has consistently ranked 20th or worse in both yards and points for the past six seasons.
This is discouraging for Bieniemy, who came to Washington after five years with the Cheifs and two Super Bowl wins as a member of Andy Reid’s staff. Former Washington quarterback and current ESPN commentator Robert Griffin III weighed in on Eric Bieniemy’s inability to find a position as head coach in the league despite his accolades.
“Eric Bieniemy not being a Head Coach after 2 Super Bowls and 7 straight AFC West titles in Kansas City is STILL BAFFLING. Then he got Charlie Brown’d by people saying he needed to run his own offense and goes to a Washington staff on its last breath. He should have never left,” Griffin said in his tweet.
It appears Bieniemy attempted to head to Washington to prove that he can lead a competent offensive attack without the a Hall-of-Fame quarterback in Patrick Mahomes and a widely heralded offensive mastermind in Reid. But, appears that decision-makers in the NFL want Bieniemy to prove himself even more than he already has before he gets a shot to helm his own team.
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