Travis Kelce Shared Special Moment With Former Coach Before Bears-Chiefs Game

The Kanas City star met up with Eric Bieniemy ahead of Friday's preseason finale against Chicago.
Chiefs star Travis Kelce shared an embrace with Bears running back coach and former Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy ahead of Friday's preseason finale.
Chiefs star Travis Kelce shared an embrace with Bears running back coach and former Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy ahead of Friday's preseason finale. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

When the Chiefs take on the Bears for their preseason finale Friday night, sparks could fly between players and coaches alike.

The game carries a special weight as Kansas City is set to face ex-offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, who was hired as the Bears' new running backs coach this past February following a yearlong stint at UCLA. Bieniemy, who spent a decade coaching the Chiefs alongside Andy Reid (five years as running backs coach, five years as offensive coordinator), will now face his former team on the other end of the sidelines.

Ahead of the preseason matchup, Kansas City star tight end Travis Kelce shared a sweet hug with Bieniemy, and the two chatted for a bit:

Bieniemy was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2018, the same year Patrick Mahomes became Kansas City's starter. Mahomes and the Chiefs would go on to make three Super Bowl appearances (and win it twice) during Bieniemy's tenure as offensive coordinator.

There doesn't appear to be any bad blood between Bieniemy and Kansas City after their mostly amicable break-up years ago. Kelce and the rest of the team are likely wishing the 56-year-old nothing but the best as he tries to hold onto a job following his last two short-lived coaching stints.


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Kristen Wong
KRISTEN WONG

Kristen Wong is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. She has been a sports journalist since 2020. Before joining SI in November 2023, Wong covered four NFL teams as an associate editor with the FanSided NFL Network and worked as a staff writer for the brand’s flagship site. Outside of work, she has dreams of running her own sporty dive bar.