Commanders Coach Eric Bieniemy 'Engaged And Emphatic' in Draft Process, Says Ron Rivera
Eric Bieniemy is entering a new chapter in his coaching career as he takes the reigns of his own ship with the Washington Commanders.
After spending the last few years with the Kansas City Chiefs, Bieniemy now gets a chance to do everything his way, including the draft.
Head coach Ron Rivera detailed how Bieniemy dealt with his first draft as part of the Commanders organization.
"He was involved, he was engaged," Rivera said. "Every time there was an opportunity to discuss, he'd come in, we'd talk about it and we'd show him. We got C Ricky Stromberg and Ricky was a guy that we're thrilled, just a guy that came in and had a really good visit. He also spent a lot of time with EB and EB was very positive about that. [OL] Braeden [Daniels] a guy that we were looking at, a guy that we felt there was a need for especially at tackle."
With Bieniemy taking over from Scott Turner as the offensive coordinator, there will likely be a few changes to the scheme and personnel. One is adding another running back.
With Brian Robinson Jr. showing his talent in his rookie season and veteran Antonio Gibson being a good backup, Rivera says Bieniemy was emphatic about getting another running back in the room.
"With the running back, he came in, he was emphatic about it," Rivera said of Bieniemy. "He said, Hey, here's a guy that we all had good grades on. He's sticking out like a sore thumb. That's an opportunity and maybe some people only view him as a first and second down back and initially that's kind of how we talked about it. But when you listen to him talk about coaching him up to become a potential third down guy, you get excited."
Washington had the 24th-ranked offense last year under Turner, and now with Sam Howell looking like the starter, there is no doubt Bieniemy is expected to improve on the 18.6 points per game average the Commanders had last season.
It was his first draft, and now Bieniemy enters his first offseason as "the guy" on offense for Washington. Seen by some as a stepping stone to the head coaching position, Bieniemy will put his best foot forward, and that can only mean good things for the franchise.
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