Andy Reid made it clear he’s standing behind Eric Bieniemy as the Chiefs offensive coordinator deals with a deeply personal crisis.
Speaking at the podium, Reid described Bieniemy’s wife, Mia, in glowing terms and said the situation will take time to heal.
"She's a saint," Reid said. "We all know that, the people who know her.
One of god's good blessings right there. Really special person.
Things happen. You just got to work through it, and that's where we're at right now.
Time will have to be involved in this to help heal a little bit, but it'll all work out in the long run.
"We all love (Eric Bieniemy), and I hate seeing these kind of things happen, but there's always a blessing in there somewhere, so I know things will work out."
Mia Bieniemy was shot twice by the couple’s 27-year-old son, Elijah. According to the report, she was hit in the chest and arm and is in stable condition. Elijah was arrested and charged with malicious wounding, use of a firearm in commission of a felony and discharge of a firearm inside a dwelling, per the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office in Virginia, per a Monday post from ESPN.
The circumstances behind the shooting have not been made public.
For the Chiefs, the immediate football answer is a temporary one. Kansas City is expected to lean on pass game coordinator Joe Bleymaier while Bieniemy is away, and the team does not appear to be looking for a long-term replacement.
That means the offense will get its early training camp work under Bleymaier, even if Bieniemy’s approach returns later and forces some adjustment. If that happens, players could have to unlearn some of what they picked up in the meantime.
Still, Bleymaier is hardly a stranger in the building. He’ll celebrate a decade with the Chiefs in 2025, and Reid has plenty of reason to trust the continuity. Bleymaier has served as a wide receiver coach, an offensive quality control coach and a pass game analyst/assistant quarterbacks coach, according to Chiefs media.
That familiarity should matter for veterans such as Patrick Mahomes, who already know Bleymaier well.
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Jawaan Taylors first camp with the Falcons has opened with a familiar concern for Chiefs fans, as the veteran tackle was placed on Atlantas Physically Unable to Play list when the team reported for its 2026 preseason work. Taylor signed a one-year deal after the Falcons lost starting right tackle Kaleb McGary to retirement, and Atlanta has already added veteran tackle Wanya Morris to help shore up the depth chart.
The designation does not automatically mean Taylor is headed for a long absence, but it does put his availability in question at the start of a crucial camp. For Kansas City observers, it is hard not to notice the uneasy echo of Taylors 2025 injury issues with the Chiefs, and Atlanta will now have to wait for him to get cleared before it can see how quickly he fits into a line that already needed reinforcements. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Dome Plan Could Bring Kansas City Something Arrowhead Never Could
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Chiefs president Mark Donovan said the team is already in preliminary discussions with the NFL about hosting Super Bowls in 2033, 2034 and 2035, and the club is also pushing for NCAA Final Fours. Those conversations are still early, but they show how quickly the stadium plans could change Kansas Citys place on the national event map. If the building comes together as planned, the city would no longer just be a football destination on fall Sundays. [Read more 🡒]