This past season for the Chiefs was marred by mistakes, injuries, a pure lack of talent, but above all else, an offensive coaching staff that failed to put their players in the best positions. While Kansas City’s offense will always be head coach Andy Reid’s scheme, the details, game installs, and overall execution fall on the offensive coordinator.
From 2018 to 2022, Eric Bieniemy served that role for the Chiefs. In those five years, and the last without receiver Tyreek Hill, the Chiefs averaged over 30 points per game. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes' stats were the stuff of legend, and offensive success felt inevitable. In 2023, however, Matt Nagy took over for Bienemy, allowing the offense to slip in its attention to detail and in-game execution. Kansas City has averaged just under 22 PPG since and has been, at times, a downright abysmal product on the field.
By all accounts, it seems Matt Nagy, whether he gets a head coaching job or not, is out the door in Kansas City. This opens the door for a new voice in that locker room, with many Chiefs fans wanting Reid to hire outside of his coaching tree for fresh ideas in a stale playbook.
Below are my three dream OC candidates who can help Mahomes and the Chiefs' offense back to greatness.
1. Nate Scheelhaase
At just 35 years old, Scheelhaase has garnered significant interest from several teams regarding their respective head coaching openings and is thought highly of in league circles for his football IQ and overall mental acuity. Scheelhaase worked at the college ranks from 2015 to 2023 before joining the Los Angeles Rams in 2024, most recently serving as the team's passing game coordinator during that season.
Rams head coach Sean McVay is a football genius, and his coaching tree has been immensely successful around the league, with Scheelhaase expected to be yet another branch. Scheelhaase worked closely with quarterback Matthew Stafford this season, helping the Rams offense score a league-best 30.5 PPG, with Stafford most likely winning MVP after passing for over 4,700 yards and 46 touchdowns.
An interesting tidbit about Scheelhaase is that he was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. He has ties to Kansas City and was more than likely a Chiefs fan while growing up in the area. More important than anything, Scheelhaase is a respected young voice in the league that would bring inklings of McVay’s offense to the Chiefs. Assuming he doesn’t land a head coaching gig, Nate Scheelhaase would be a home run hire.
2. Mike McDaniel
Head coach of the Miami Dolphins since 2022, Mike McDaniel was recently fired after a 35-33 overall record. While McDaniel is receiving interest from certain teams for their respective head coaching positions, I believe him to be a better offensive mind than anything, making him an excellent choice for the Chiefs.
McDaniel's job was never easy in Miami, as he had to work around QB Tua Tagovailoa’s clear weaknesses in terms of size, processing, accuracy, and, for extended periods, horrifically bad turnovers. Despite this, in 2023, he masterminded the Dolphins' leap to a top-2 offense in both points and yards gained. The good news for McDaniel is that Patrick Mahomes doesn’t really have any weaknesses to work around.
His offenses are built around attacking teams horizontally to set up deep shots vertically, and hitting explosive plays, which is something this Chiefs offense has been sorely lacking. McDaniel’s approach to running the football also excites me as he relies heavily on pre-snap motion (much like Reid). However, unlike Reid, McDaniel preaches a lot of two-RB looks with tight ends who can block along the edges, allowing the ball-carrier to attack multiple gaps. Mike McDaniel would be an exciting hire and someone who can help develop the running game to take pressure off Mahomes.
3. Kliff Kingsbury
Former Arizona Cardinals head coach from 2019 to 2022 and Washington Commanders offensive coordinator from 2024 to 2025, Kliff Kingsbury has been around the league for a while. He has always been thought highly of for both his coaching style and nuanced offenses. In two of his four years with Arizona, Kingsbury’s offenses ranked in the top-8 in yards, and with a rookie QB in Washington last year, Kingsbury coached that offense to nearly 29 PPG.
What people may forget about Kingsbury is how he was the head coach at Texas Tech for all three years of Mahomes' college career. In his final two seasons, Mahomes and Kingsbury worked hand-in-hand in Tech’s air-raid offense, throwing for nearly 10,000 yards and 77 TDs. All of this to say that Kingsbury has had success with Mahomes before and is someone whom the Chiefs should feel very comfortable hiring if they do decide to bring in an outside voice.
While Kingsbury’s offensive philosophy is quite similar to Reid’s in terms of running the majority of plays from shotgun and attacking zone coverage, he is no doubt a brighter offensive mind than Nagy, more demanding when it comes to the smaller details, and has had real offensive success with the team’s current Hall of Fame quarterback.