There is already a noticeable shift in energy around the Kansas City Chiefs' offense after an offseason reunion with Eric Bieniemy.
It appears to be the perfect offseason hire to push Kansas City's offense to a level of accountability and performance fans begged to see under former OC Matt Nagy. This is an attitude shared by the players, with Trey Smith stopping by radio row to speak with Shannon Sharpe about the new addition, with comments coming via FOX4 News, Kansas City's Harold R. Kuntz.
""He lets us be men out there, but, at the same breath, we have to be more accountable for ourselves. For us man, it's a standard, getting back to that standard.""Trey Smith
It is hard to remember a Kansas City player ever being this vocally outspoken and excited about Nagy. While there were positive comments, the energy and excitement were clearly far different. This is even more understandable as Nagy is already under fire after just being hired as the New York Giants' offensive coordinator. It is two opposites that perfectly tell the story of why fans are so excited about Bieniemy's presence ahead of the 2026 season.
Egos and accomplishments are going to be checked at the door under the coordinator, as Smith alluded to in his comments. Bieniemy doesn't care if you're the last player on the roster or Travis Kelce; the standard is the standard, and the coach views it as his job to hold the roster to this, no matter how painful it might be.
Chiefs Fans Can Already Feel the Difference Under New OC Eric Bieniemy
While this isn't meant to pile on top of Nagy, who is already facing heat, it is the reality of the situation. Apart from the coaching style, the Chiefs averaged only 21 points under Nagy in the 2025 season. It was the team's lowest average in the last decade. This points to how frustrating the results were and why Bieniemy is such a breath of fresh air as the team turns the page.
Accountability and holding players to a standard while respecting them as adults is a difficult line to walk. It is why even great coaching staffs often lose their luster as the same messages are repeated rather than refined. For the Chiefs, this won't be the case with Bieniemy having been gone for three seasons and Kansas City understanding the importance of this coaching style, having endured their worst season with Patrick Mahomes in 2025 and suffering an awful Super Bowl loss the season before.
No question, it makes sense that the Chiefs are psyched to see Bieniemy return and telling that we didn't hear these types of comments when Nagy was in the position. The change provides reasons to hope that the dynasty can be put back on track and that the 2026 season was an outlier and not a sign of things to come.