Commanders Winners and Losers After Hiring Chiefs' Eric Bieniemy

There's a good and bad side to every move, and the Washington Commanders' latest hire is no different.

The Washington Commanders saved the best for last it would appear and hired Eric Bieniemy to be their assistant head coach and offensive coordinator despite the fact he was the last candidate to be interviewed. 

We've spoken to multiple Commanders players who are excited about the move, and even more, have taken to social media to express their approval of the hire. 

But not everyone is going to come out as a winner in this instance because every move has an upside, and a down. 

Here are three from each side of this move, as we see it today. 

WINNERS

Eric Bieniemy: First and foremost is the man getting the new job with the elevated title compared to the one he carried with the Kansas City Chiefs. 

Some believe Bieniemy should have stayed in Kansas City and stood up against those who may be unjustly weighing decisions out of his control against him. 

But Bieniemy is choosing to attack those criticisms head-on and show the NFL he can run his own offense without the overseeing eyes of Chiefs head coach Andy Reid upon him.

And we applaud his taking his own fate into his hands, and deciding what's right for him regardless of what others may think.

Ron Rivera: Washington's coach sat next to general manager Martin Mayhew at the end of the season as both men stated and reiterated they wanted to run the ball an average of twice per three plays called. 

Rivera then hired Bieniemy to be his offensive play-caller despite the fact he's coming from a system that employed a nearly 66 percent pass-first concept. 

The move shows Rivera is hiring the right man for his personnel, not necessarily his wants, and now gets to be the man who gave Bieniemy his opportunity to face his critics. 

Wide Receivers: All of them, Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, Jahan Dotson, Dyami Brown, Cam Sims (hopefully), and beyond.

When the Commanders reconvene for the 2023 NFL season they'll have an offensive coordinator who has been part of a system that does nothing but accentuates skill position strengths.

LOSERS

Unathletic Offensive Linemen: There's a place for every type of player. But the expectation with Bieniemy's arrival is that Washington's offense is going to move. 

Side to side, and up and down the field, this isn't expected to be an offense that simply pounds the rock between the tackles - although there will be times that is needed. 

That means Commanders offensive linemen will need to be able to move to the rhythm of that scheme, and if they can't they'll likely be moving on to another place of employment. 

Time of Possession: One of Washington's strengths last season was its ability to control the ball. 

Of course, some of that was by design but some of it was out of necessity. 

Meanwhile, the Chiefs held the ball for an average of four minutes less per game than the Commanders. 

While Bieniemy's offense won't likely be a carbon copy of what he ran in Kansas City, it's reasonable to expect at least a two-minute drop in time of possession per game. 

Which may not be terrible, as long as more possessions end in points in the process.

Ron Rivera: Maybe. And hopefully not. 

But if things don't go well for Washington early on then there are going to be all-too-familiar calls for his job. 

And who would lead the candidates to receive the interim tag more than the assistant head coach who many feel should have the top job already?

Find David Harrison on Twitter @DHarrison82 and on the Locked On Commanders podcast.

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