Eric Bieniemy won't return to Washington on Dan Quinn's Commanders coaching staff

New Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn announced on Monday that offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy won't return on his coaching staff.

Quinn made the announcement at his introductory news conference while flanked by team owner Josh Harris and general manager Adam Peters, days after he was hired by the Commanders to replace the fired Ron Rivera.

"I had a good visit with him," Quinn said of Bieniemy. "I think he's an excellent coach. We're not going to work together here. I wanted him to know I respect the work that he's done. I wish EB nothing but the best."

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Quinn joined the Commanders after spending the past three seasons as the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys. He's the sideline face of a makeover in Washington following the July sale of the franchise by long-term owner Dan Snyder to a group led by Harris. The Commanders hired Peters from the San Francisco 49ers' front office in January.

After hiring Quinn, the Commanders hired former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as their offensive coordinator on Sunday, leaving Bieniemy out of his former role. The Commanders also hired former Cowboys assistant Joe Whitt Jr. as defensive coordinator. Whitt was the secondary and defensive passing game coordinator under Quinn.

Quinn won't call plays in Washington. He confirmed with reporters that Whitt will call the defense while Kingsbury will call the offense.

Why the Commanders hired Kingsbury

Quinn discussed the decision to hire Kingsbury on Monday while likening him to San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, who served as his offensive coordinator when Quinn was the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons.

"Kliff has always been somebody that I kept up with," Quinn said. "In the same way of why I wanted to hire Kyle years ago, he was hard to go against. He would stretch the field horizontally and vertically, and going against Kliff those same feelings you had. This is gonna be tough. Matchups, formations, speed, shots down the field, aggressiveness, boldness to go.

"As a coach you were writing down some names. If this is something in your future — if I get that shot, this is somebody I would want to talk to."

Bieniemy spent one season in Washington as Rivera's offensive coordinator. He joined the Commanders in 2023 after five seasons as the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs under head coach Andy Reid.

Thanks in part to the success of Kansas City's offense, including two Super Bowl wins, Bieniemy's name has been repeatedly floated among NFL head coaching candidates. He hits the market this offseason with all of the league's head coaching vacancies filled and coordinator openings dwindling.