The dust appears to have settled on the Washington Commanders and their search for an offensive coordinator. Head coach Ron Rivera made his rounds at Radio Row during Super Bowl week last week and envisioned his search for an offensive coordinator wrapping up soon.
The Commanders fired Scott Turner on Jan. 10 and have interviewed seven known candidates since that time. Washington waited until after the Super Bowl to interview Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator, something Rivera openly acknowledged. While Washington has reached out for an interview with Bieniemy, it’s unknown when that interview will take place.
One of the candidates, Charles London, took a new job with the Titans. Two of the other candidates, Eric Studesville and Thomas Brown, don’t appear to be top contenders. That leaves us with four remaining options.
We rank each of those options for Washington. We consider cost, style of offense and fan reaction in our rankings.
4. Pat Shurmur
Pat Shurmur isn’t a terrible coach. He was the first to interview for this position and has a relationship with Rivera dating back to their days on Andy Reid’s Philadelphia staff. Shurmur is a two-time former head coach and has been a coordinator for multiple teams. He’s had success working with young quarterbacks and his best work came with Case Keenum and the Vikings in 2017.
Shurmur was out of the NFL in 2022. Perhaps that gave him a chance to evaluate every team and himself as a coach. Shurmur wouldn’t be a bad hire for Washington, but he also wouldn’t inspire a ton of hope. The Commanders could run a competent offense with Shurmur, but would he tailor an offense around Sam Howell that featured a lot of RPOs?
3. Ken Zampese
Ken Zampese has been Washington’s QB coach since 2020. He worked with Howell last season and is supposedly a big fan. That’s an advantage for Zampese. Would he keep Turner’s offense in place? Turner’s issue wasn’t always the plays or the design of the offense; it was the play-calling and the flow of the game. Zampese has been an offensive coordinator one time for two seasons. It didn’t go great, but he didn’t have much to work with.
There’s also the ownership factor. Promoting Zampese is the cheapest option. Dan Snyder, who has the team up for sale, may not approve of Rivera spending big on one of the top two candidates. Zampese is likely the safest option for a number of reasons. It wouldn’t inspire fans, who would view the entire search process as pointless if you went this long and just promoted Zampese.
2. Greg Roman
Greg Roman is an underrated coach. He’s been an offensive coordinator for three NFL teams for a total of 10 seasons. Roman’s offenses almost always finish among the best in rushing offense. Roman has a strong history of working with dual-threat quarterbacks. He’s done excellent work with Colin Kaepernick, Tyrod Taylor and Lamar Jackson. He also played a role in resurrecting Alex Smith’s career with the 49ers in 2011.
The knock on Roman is an overly simplistic pass offense. However, he’s never had wide receivers like he’d have in Washington. He’d give Rivera and the Commanders a legit ground game on day one. Rivera needs to find the truth about Roman and the passing game. Are the complaints more due to a lack of receiver talent in his three previous stops?
He’d undoubtedly design a QB-friendly offense for Sam Howell, which should be considered. Many fans may grumble but only because of what they read on social media. Roman can coach. Are there concerns? Sure, but it’s up to Rivera to cut through the noise and find the truth.
One concern is he made $3.5 million last season. It’s hard to believe he’d get that right now in Washington.
1. Eric Bieniemy
Why would Eric Bieniemy leave the Kansas City Chiefs? Well, there are multiple answers to that question. Firstly, to get out from the shadow of legendary head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Bieniemy was KC’s offensive coordinator for five seasons, reaching three Super Bowls and winning two. What else can he prove there?
Bieniemy certainly deserves an opportunity to be a head coach. There have been rumors about why he hasn’t received that opportunity that we aren’t getting into here. He’s earned the chance. Many believe him leaving the Chiefs, designing his own offense, and calling plays will give him more exposure to prove himself.
While Washington is far from a perfect situation, the short-term nature could play in Bieniemy’s favor. Rivera is on the hot seat entering 2023. There will likely be a new owner. Therefore, Bieniemy may not only be auditioning for other NFL teams as a head coach but potentially in Washington, too. The Commanders have skill talent. If Bieniemy could design a winning offense around Howell, there would be no denying him in 2024.
He will likely be costly. Bieniemy would excite a good portion of the fan base. Results matter, and Bieniemy has the results on his side. We should know soon if Bieniemy is even interested in this opportunity.
