This is the kind of story that puts football all the way in its proper place. Eric Bieniemy left Chiefs training camp on July 27 after his wife, Mia, was shot at their home in Ashburn, Virginia. Their 27-year-old son, Elijah Bieniemy, was arrested and charged with malicious wounding, use of a firearm in commission of a felony and discharge of a firearm inside a dwelling, per ESPN. Mia was hospitalized with gunshot wounds to her chest and arm.
Bieniemy has been away from the team ever since, missing the entire back half of camp while Mia recovered. Andy Reid told reporters there was no timetable for his return and that pass game coordinator Joe Bleymaier would keep running the offense in his absence. Reid's updates over the past two weeks were simple: Mia was stable, then improving, then out of the ICU.
Now Adam Schefter is reporting Bieniemy is set to rejoin the Chiefs on Monday, with more details on the story coming via Nate Taylor.
More about Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy returning to the team Monday after a two-week absence following the shooting of his wife Mia. Story via @ByNateTaylor: https://t.co/CFhY0v8RYU
Even while physically gone, Bieniemy reportedly never fully checked out of the building. The Chiefs set him up with a live feed of practice so he could watch the offense work through camp, he sat in on meetings over Zoom, and players like Kenneth Walker said they'd been able to talk football with him remotely. Bleymaier said Bieniemy had been reaching out more and more with football stuff as things settled, which is about as good a sign as any that this trip back to Kansas City was coming.
The timing matters. The Chiefs open the preseason on August 15 and the regular season on September 14, so getting the guy who runs the offense back in the building before real reps start is a real deal. Bieniemy is in his 2nd stint as Chiefs OC after previously leaving for the Commanders' head coaching interview circuit and a run with the Washington staff before returning to Kansas City this offseason.
None of that context is really the point here, though. A father spent 2 weeks away from his job because his wife was shot, allegedly by their own son, and he's only now getting back to something resembling normal. Everyone from Reid on down has framed this the right way — football waits.