It appears the Washington Commanders could have a problem getting their players to adapt to Eric Bieniemy’s methods.
The new offensive coordinator, who joined the coaching staff after helping the Kansas City Chiefs win two Super Bowls, is expected to have a big impact on results. But, according to head coach Ron Rivera, some of the players can’t hang.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday morning, Rivera admitted that some players have approached him to complain about the new OC’s intensity in training.
“I had a number of guys come to me and I said, ‘Hey, just go talk to him.’ I said, ‘Understand what he’s trying to get across to you.’ I think as they go and they talk and they listen to him, it’s been enlightening for a lot of these guys,” he revealed, per Nick Jhabvala of the Washington Post. “I mean, it’s a whole different approach.
“Again, you’re getting a different kind of player from the players back in the past, especially in light of how things are coming out of college football. So a lot of these young guys, they do struggle with certain things and a lot of it is from where they’ve been. I mean, guys coming from certain programs are used to it. Guys coming from other programs aren’t as much.”
Given Bieniemy’s pedigree as a coach, players would be better off adjusting to the 53-year-old’s ways as opposed to him softening his approach to suit them. But they’ll likely rue their head coach selling them out like that.
