Eric Bieniemy appears to be returning to the NFL ranks. On Saturday, CBS Sports reported that Bieniemy agreed to become the Chicago Bears running backs coach.
Bieniemy is the latest assistant to land with the Bears, as recently hired head coach Ben Johnson continues to fill out his coaching staff. Bieniemy spent last year handling the offensive coordinator duties at UCLA, during the football program's first season in the Big Ten Conference.
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Bieniemy was a standout running back in college before he became a second round NFL Draft selection in 1991. He also has experience coaching ball carriers, serving as the running backs coach at Colorado — his alma mater — from 2001-02.
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He took the same job at UCLA from 2003-04, before making the leap to the professional ranks when he was named the Minnesota Vikings running backs coach in 2006. Bieniemy returned to Colorado in 2011 when he was named the Buffaloes offensive coordinator. However, Bieniemy largely rose to prominence when he moved into his role as the Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator.
Bieniemy was a member of two Super Bowl winning coaching staffs in Kansas City, but he opted for a change of scenery after the 2022 season.
Bieniemy was named the Washington Commanders assistant head coach and offensive coordinator in 2023 and was given the opportunity to call plays. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid served as the primary offensive playcaller during Bieniemy's tenure in Kansas City.
Bieniemy is now expected to bring his championship experience to Chicago's coaching staff. Meanwhile, Johnson selected former Denver Broncos tight end coach Declan Doyle as the Bears offensive coordinator, while Antwaan Randle El will serve as the team's assistant head coach. Randle El worked with Johnson in Detroit, handling the Lions wide receivers coaching duties.
Bieniemy's former team, the Chiefs, will meet the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9.
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NFL star A.J. Brown made headlines when cameras recently captured him passing time during a Philadelphia Eagles game reading a book, "Inner Excellence," by self-help author Jim Murphy.
Brown's sideline routine contributed to a spike in book sales, with "Inner Excellence" quickly jumping into the top spot on Amazon's trending list the day after the Eagles' wild-card win over the Green Bay Packers.
The book ranked 523,497 prior to the sudden increase in attention brought on by Brown.
Brown and the Eagles will now turn the page and focus on preventing a Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl three-peat. The Eagles are hoping to avoid a repeat of the 2023 Super Bowl.
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Brown caught six passes for 96 yards and scored a touchdown in the 2023 Super Bowl in Arizona. But Kansas City took the lead in the fourth quarter and celebrated a 38-35 victory.
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Two full NFL seasons have passed since the loss, and the Eagles could still be haunted by the memory of how they let a chance at winning the franchise's second Super Bowl championship slip away.
A play here, a play there, and the Eagles could have been Super Bowl champions.
Quarterback Jalen Hurts replied "next question" when asked his most vivid memory from the 2023 Super Bowl, and Brown recounted a missed opportunity for him to score a touchdown that could have changed the outcome.
"The play really kept me up thinking about, ‘How did I miss that?’ and what I got confused on," Brown said.
The play?
"I don’t want to get into it because we may run it back," he said.
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Brown finished the 2024 season with 67 catches and a team-high 1,079 yards despite missing four games. It was the third consecutive year Brown surpassed 1,000 receiving yards.
"A.J. is the best receiver that this city has ever seen," Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said.
Brown was rewarded in April with a three-year contract extension that included $84 million in guaranteed money. He was about to become the highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL at $32 million a year until Minnesota Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson's deal topped his later that summer.
While Brown is paid like an elite receiver, he said he felt like nothing but a "paid actor" at the 2023 Super Bowl.
Brown said if he had his way, the Eagles would arrive in New Orleans on Friday, hold a walk-through Saturday and play the game Sunday. His Super Bowl experience was like something out of a movie in which he played the role of a football player. He has tried to steel his emotions amid this year's Super Bowl hype.
"It’s about us, but it’s not about us," he said. "We have so much we have to do for everyone else. The media, the fans. There’s only so little time that we get to focus on what’s important, and that’s the game."
Brown said he’s been turning down media requests "left and right" because, when it comes to Super Bowl hype, "none of this stuff matters."
The Super Bowl kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET Feb. 9 from the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce was fined $11,255 for taunting during Sunday's AFC championship game victory over the Buffalo Bills, the league announced Saturday.
The taunt that prompted the fine came after a touchdown run by Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the final two minutes of the second quarter. Kelce approached Bills safeties Damar Hamlin and Cole Bishop, aggressively nodding his head as he said something.
Multiple referees were standing near Kelce at the time of the taunt. But none of them threw a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct, which would have cost the Chiefs 15 yards after the play, either on the extra point try or the ensuing kickoff.
However, the referees did throw a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on Bills defensive tackle Jordan Phillips after he responded to Kelce's taunt by headbutting the tight end.
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Phillips was also fined $6,722 for the headbutt, the league announced Saturday.
The Chiefs won the game, 32-29, and many fans expressed outrage over multiple calls that benefited Kansas City during the game.
Officials ruled Bills quarterback Josh Allen was stopped short of a first down on a 4th-and-short play in the fourth quarter. CBS rules analyst Gene Steratore said during the broadcast he believed Allen got the first down.
That call prompted backlash from NFL fans on social media, but it was not the only one.
During the second quarter, officials ruled Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy made a catch despite video replay showing the ball touched the ground.
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Referees came under similar scrutiny during the Chiefs' divisional round playoff win against the Houston Texans one week earlier when a pair of roughing the passer penalties were called against the Texans for hits on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Houston edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. was called for roughing the passer on a third down in the first quarter. Anderson appeared to push Mahomes in the chest after Mahomes had thrown the ball incomplete to tight end Travis Kelce and was flagged.
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The second penalty came during a Mahomes scramble in the third quarter. He had two blockers on a run and three defenders bearing down on him. He moved to his right and then back to his left when he decided to slide.
ESPN broadcaster Troy Aikman criticized the penalty and said it's something the league has to address in the offseason.
Texans players and head coach DeMeco Ryans criticized the referees after the game.
Mahomes addressed the issue when asked by reporters Wednesday if he believed referees were giving him preferential treatment.
"I don't feel that way,'' Mahomes answered. "At the end of the day, the referees are doing their best to call the game as fair and as proper as they possibly can. And all you can do is go out there and play the game that you love as hard as you can and live with the results. ... I think that's what we preach here in Kansas City.
"You get new referees every year. You get new circumstances, and you never can really tell because every play's different. And that's what makes the NFL so special. I feel like I've just continued to play the game, and I just try to win. And whatever happens kind of happens."
Kelce refused to address the issue when asked by brother Jason Kelce about the officiating during an episode of their "New Heights" podcast.
"I'd like to plead the Fifth," the tight end said, jokingly referring to his constitutional right to remain silent, when Jason brought up the issue.
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