08/18/26 12:11:00
Printable Page
08/18 12:09 CDT Bieniemy jokes wife Mia gave him blessing to rejoin Chiefs
after she was shot at their Virginia home
Bieniemy jokes wife Mia gave him blessing to rejoin Chiefs after she was shot
at their Virginia home
By DAVE SKRETTA
AP Sports Writer
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) --- Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy
joked Tuesday that he had the blessing of his wife, Mia, to return to the team
after she was shot at their Virginia home because, well, "I know I was driving
her and a bunch of my family members crazy in the house."
Mia was shot the evening of July 26, and the couple's 27-year-old son, Elijah,
was arrested. Eric left the Chiefs right away to help his family through the
crisis, and he returned to camp last week ahead of a preseason loss to the Rams.
"First and foremost, yes, she's on a great road to recovery. Yes, she's doing
great," Bieniemy said of his wife, speaking to reporters for the first time
since she was rushed to the hospital with multiple wounds. "It is one of the
main reasons that I am back here, because of her recovery. She's truly a
soldier. She's a saint. And it's been incredible to watch."
Bieniemy was never far from camp, even while he was back home in Ashburn,
Virginia. He was able to watch streams of practice from Missouri Western State
University, and he was often conferenced into team meetings before and after
the workouts.
At one point, he called Chiefs general manager Brett Veach --- who he knew was
seated beside coach Andy Reid --- and told him to give Big Red the phone.
Bieniemy proceeded to remind Reid to get on one of his players for a seemingly
minor coaching point.
"I was yelling at the screen, yelling at players, yelling at coaches --- ?What
the hell are we doing?!' I'm yelling at myself, 'Why would you put that play
in!?" Bieniemy said, smiling. "At the end of the day, I was making sure I was
keeping up with what was going on."
At the same time, he was driving Mia and the rest of the family crazy.
"So she was like, ?You have my blessing to leave,'" Eric said, "so it was time
to get back."
Elijah Bieniemy has been charged with malicious wounding, the use of a firearm
in commission of a felony and discharge of a firearm inside a dwelling. His
court appearances remain delayed pending a mental health evaluation.
"I'd like to say thank you to the Hunt family, the entire Chiefs family for the
outpouring, the love and support that my family has received through this
particular situation," Eric Bieniemy said. "And with all that said, we're back
to football."
While brash and demanding, Bieniemy is universally beloved within the Kansas
City locker room. He was part of coaching staffs that helped the Chiefs reach
three Super Bowls and win two, and he helped to set the foundation for the
dynasty to come.
When he left a few years ago to serve as the Commanders' offensive coordinator,
it was in the hopes that calling his own plays could someday lead to an NFL
head coaching job. But Washington struggled in his lone season there and the
coaching staff was let go, and Bieniemy ended up spending a season at UCLA and
last season coaching the running backs for the Chicago Bears.
He returned to Kansas City to replace Matt Nagy, who left to become the
offensive coordinator of the Giants.
"Obviously it's great to have him back. We missed him and prayed for his family
when he was out," Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton said. "But to have a guy like
that come back to the field, man, a competitor --- it brings out the best in
us."
NOTES: LT Josh Simmons did not practice Tuesday because of back pain. He worked
out alongside RG Trey Smith, who has been out with a hip injury. ... DE Ashton
Gillotte (foot) and WR Tyquan Thornton (hamstring) left practice early.
Gillotte already has missed time with a hamstring injury. ... LB Drue Tranquill
(back) and CB L'Jarius Snead (knee) were back in pads for the workout.
___
See AP's full NFL coverage here
|
