KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In his news conference Monday to share his reasons for rehiring Eric Bieniemy as the Kansas City Chiefs‘ offensive coordinator, coach Andy Reid spent several minutes advocating for Matt Nagy to be hired as a head coach once again.
“Matt and I have a great relationship,” Reid said of Nagy, who had been the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator the past three years. “Before the season even started here, I knew that he wanted an opportunity to have his own show. He’s been a head coach. He was Coach of the Year [in 2018 with Chicago Bears]. All the things I’ve said about him I still feel [that way] about him.
“He deserves to have a head coaching job. If not, it gives him an opportunity to go out and do his thing. I mean, somebody is missing a gem here. That’s how I feel. I would love to see him get picked up and going. At the same time, we got back a gem [in Bieniemy]. It has a chance to be a win-win here when everything is said and done.”
Earlier this month, Nagy’s contract expired after the Chiefs finished 6-11 and missed the postseason. Since then, Nagy has been going through coaching interviews across the league — and was a finalist for the Tennessee Titans‘ opening, a job that eventually went to Robert Saleh.
The Chiefs on Friday released a thank you post to Nagy on their social media accounts, acknowledging that he would not be on the coaching staff in 2026. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes responded to the post by posting a short on Instagram with a saluting face emoji.
“Thank you coach for everything!” Mahomes wrote. “Made me a better player and man!”
In Nagy’s three years as offensive coordinator, the Chiefs reached two Super Bowls, winning in 2023 to become the first franchise in two decades to repeat as champion.
An argument can be made that Nagy’s best job in the role was during the 2024 season, when the Chiefs were pursuing a three-peat. Even with significant injuries to running back Isiah Pacheco and receivers Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice — plus the acquisition of receiver DeAndre Hopkins before the trade deadline — Nagy was able to adjust the Chiefs offense for the team to at one point win 17 consecutive one-score games over two seasons, including the postseason, which was the longest streak in NFL history.
More than three weeks ago, Nagy acknowledged his desire to earn another opportunity to be a head coach. Entering Monday, four teams — the Buffalo Bills, the Arizona Cardinals, the Cleveland Browns and the Las Vegas Raiders — still have a head coach vacancy.
“The last three years for me have been a little bit more unique. It’s more of an organizational standpoint, structure-wise,” Nagy said. “Being a former head coach helping Coach Reid out, anytime you look at what went on this year as an offense, you’re frustrated, disappointed because it’s your job as a coordinator to make sure everything is done the right way and that you succeed and win. That didn’t happen. That drives me, though. That motivates me. I don’t run from that. I’ve been through a lot in my life in coaching.
“I feel really good about where I’m at. I’ve prepared for several years, since I went through it, [for] the right time. Everything I went through in Chicago, it all happened for a reason. To be able to come back here in Kansas City and be here with Coach Reid and all these players, is special. It’s that time of the year, so be ready for it.”
Reid shared Monday that he interviewed other coaches for the offensive coordinator opening before the Chiefs requested from the Bears to interview Bieniemy last week. In going from Nagy to Bieniemy, Reid said the transition was logical for the unit, especially since Bieniemy rejoining the team will reunite him with Mahomes, who performed his best in his nine-year career from 2018-22.
“E.B. will be very direct with [Mahomes], like he does with everybody,” Reid said. “[Mahomes] knows it’s coming from a place of knowledge. Patrick loved Nagy, and he also loves E.B.
“I know both guys and know them well. I’ve worked with them and won championships with them. Here’s Nagy in a position where he’s got an opportunity here potentially to move on and great things happen for [him] and his family. On one side of that, I’m pushing that, saying, ‘Let’s go, man! Do your thing!’ On the other side, I’ve got to sit there and go, ‘Who’s going to replace this guy that just came off of winning a couple championships and going to three Super Bowls.'”
