The ink had only just dried on Eric Bieniemy’s return to the Kansas City Chiefs as their offensive coordinator. After leaving the team in 2022, the Chiefs roped their former OC back to the team to help navigate the difficulties they had last season. But even before he could run his squad through the training camp, the league has set him on the path chasing the next big job.

Bieniemy is in Orlando for the NFL’s Accelerator program, along with 33 other coaches and executives being prepped for head coaching gigs in the future. The program itself is back after a pause last season, and the new version is built around senior coaches and executives with the most HC or GM upside.

Bieniemy fits that mold because he has done both sides of the job. After playing for nine years as a running back in the NFL, Bieniemy has been moving through multiple coaching gigs since 2000. He already has a decade-long history of working under Andy Reid from 2013 through 2022, first as a running backs coach, and then as the offensive coordinator. 10 years with Reid would have been enough to make the case for any head coaching candidate, and he just came back to add more years to that resume.

Additionally, the league is not treating him like a random attendee. For the first time since the program originally started in 2022, it had been limited to diversity participants. But now the sessions focus on networking, interview training, and developmental work for candidates viewed as ready for the top chair. As for his Kansas City stint, Andy Reid had already shared a big endorsement for his old coach.

“It’s good to get him back in the building,” Reid said. “I think we all know the energy that Eric brings and what he gives to a football team.”

With football experience spanning more than three decades, Bieniemy’s case for head coaching is already made, especially with how much Reid has appreciated his presence with the Chiefs.

“I think he’s got a great knowledge of the offense. I think he understands leadership,” Coach Reid had said. “I’ve always said he’s a great leader of men, whether it’s coaches, players. I think he does a heck of a job there. He’s good with you guys (reporters). He’s very honest with you, and there’s no hidden agendas.”

So, the Chiefs have a coordinator who can push a room, and the league has already put that same coach in the category of names it expects to promote anyway. But the league and Coach Reid aren’t the only ones who see Bieniemy’s impact on football. Veteran offensive lineman Trey Smith has also shared his thoughts on the matter.

Trey Smith’s verdict on Eric Bieniemy

While Bieniemy was working on his head coaching foundations in Orlando, Trey Smith was on the Ross Tucker Podcast hyping up his offensive coordinator.

“Energy, passion, discipline. He’s going to be screaming finish every single day,” Smith said on the podcast. “I already know when we get there in OTAs, he’s going to be intense. He’s going to be ready. I think he’s already ready. To be honest with you, man, I love EB.”

Trey Smith joined the Chiefs through the 2021 NFL Draft. Since then, he’s had two years working under Bieniemy (2021 and 2022). And even through just those two years, Smith came away with a read similar to Coach Reid.

“Just as a guy, you can tell what type of player he was,” Smith continued. “He has a certain standard of excellence that he wants to uphold. I’m really excited to get back to work with him, and to see what the season holds.”

Bieniemy’s intensity is still the point, and that is why he keeps showing up in conversations about bigger jobs.

Smith, meanwhile, offered a health update as well. An ankle injury had ended his 2025 campaign after just 12 games, and Smith has been on the mend since then. On the podcast, he also noted he intends to be careful about his health this season and is looking forward to working out with the team.

“Really, for me, just excited to get back to work,” Smith said. “This is the longest offseason I’ve had. I’m already a little bit antsy. I want to get back to lifting and stuff. I’m trying to be smart and let the body heal and let everything take its course.”

Last season, the Chiefs got eliminated from the playoff race in Week 15, making it the first time since 2014 that the Chiefs didn’t have a playoff berth. For Smith, who has only seen the dynasty’s dominance, that long offseason is already taking its toll. But he’s excited, and he has his old OC ready to coach him for the new season.

Smith has already given his verdict on Eric Bieniemy. The league has followed it up by putting him on a head-coach track. Whether that turns into a head coaching gig next season or not, for now, both of them have 17 games to prepare and get the Chiefs back to the Super Bowl.