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Eric Bieniemy joins the Bears as running backs coach in 2025. With 25 years of coaching experience and two Super Bowl titles, Bieniemy arrives in Chicago after most recently serving as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at UCLA in 2024, following one season in a similar capacity with the Washington Commanders in 2023.

Eric Bieniemy joins the Bears as running backs coach in 2025.

With 25 years of coaching experience and two Super Bowl titles, Bieniemy arrives in Chicago after most recently serving as assistant head Coach and offensive coordinator at UCLA in 2024, following one season in a similar capacity with the Washington Commanders in 2023.

Prior to Washington, Bieniemy spent 10 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, five years as offensive coordinator (2018-22) following a five-season tenure coaching the running backs (2013-17). In his time with the Chiefs, Bieniemy oversaw the development of QB Patrick Mahomes, aiding a staff that propelled Kansas City to the postseason on nine occasions, claiming seven AFC West Division titles, appearing in five-straight AFC Championship Games with three trips to the Super Bowl, winning two World Championships with victories in Super Bowl LIV and Super Bowl LVII.

In his final season with Kansas City (2022), Bieniemy helped the Chiefs lead the league in scoring (29.2 points per game), tie a franchise record with 14 wins, secure the AFC's No. 1 seed in the postseason and win Super Bowl LVII, as Mahomes earned his second AP NFL Most Valuable Player award after setting a new career-high with 5,250 passing yards to lead the NFL. Paired with 41 passing touchdowns, Mahomes became the second player in NFL history (Drew Brees) to secure multiple seasons with 5,000-yard passing yards and 40-plus touchdowns. TE Travis Kelce had the second-most receiving yards of his career (1,338), tallying his seventh straight 1,000-yard season, an NFL record by a tight end. In 2021, Bieniemy continued to lead the Kansas City Chiefs offense to finish in the top five in multiple NFL categories including, third down conversion percentage (1st; 52.2), first downs (1st; 419), yards per game (3rd; 396.8), points per game (4th; 28.2) and offensive touchdowns (5th; 53) en route to the team's sixth-straight AFC West title. QB Patrick Mahomes continued to add to his NFL resume, adding 4,839 passing yards on 436 completions and 37 touchdowns. WR Tyreek Hill (111) and TE Travis Kelce (92) each finished the season with more than 90 receptions, marking the first time in franchise history that a pair of teammates each recorded 90+ receptions in the same season. The 2020 Kansas City Chiefs offense led the NFL in multiple categories including, net passing yards per game (303.4), yards per game (415.8) and first downs (397), capturing the club's fifth-straight AFC West title and second-straight Super Bowl appearance. Mahomes became the fastest QB to record 100 career passing touchdowns, doing so in just 40 games. TE Travis Kelce set an NFL record for a tight end with 1,416 receiving yards, extending his NFL record to five-straight seasons with at least 1,000 yards receiving. WR Tyreek Hill had 1,276 receiving yards and 15 touchdown receptions, tying the franchise record, while rookie RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire recorded 803 rushing yards finishing fourth among all rookies.

Under Bieniemy, the Chiefs finished the season with a World Championship, the team's first Super Bowl victory in 50 years. The Super Bowl champion Chiefs offense finished in the top-10 in total yards per game (379.2), passing yards per game (281.1), yards per play (6.22) and points per game (28.2). In his second year as the starter, Mahomes became the fastest quarterback in NFL history to reach 9,000 passing yards and 75 touchdowns, doing so in just 30 games. Kelce became the fastest TE to reach 500 career receptions in NFL history and became the first TE in NFL history to record back-to-back 1,200 receiving yards seasons. Hill became the fastest wide receiver in Chiefs history to record 4,000 career receiving yards, tallying 4,054 receiving yards in 58 games. In his first year as offensive coordinator, Bieniemy oversaw one of the most prolific offenses in Chiefs history as the club finished 12-4 in 2018, earning its third-consecutive AFC West Division title en route to hosting the first AFC Championship Game in team history. Mahomes was named the AP NFL Most Valuable Player after passing for 5,097 yards and 50 touchdowns in just his first season as a starting quarterback. Kelce ranked second among NFL tight ends with 1,336 receiving yards, and Hill's 1,479 single-season receiving yards ranked first in Chiefs history.

Under Bieniemy's tutelage in 2017, rookie RB Kareem Hunt rushed for an NFL-best 1,327 yards, setting a Chiefs rookie record. From 2013-15, he mentored RB Jamaal Charles, who, in 2014, recorded 1,000 rushing yards for the fifth time in his career. Charles became the all-time leading rusher in franchise history and finished his Chiefs career with 7,260 career rushing yards. In 2013, under Bieniemy, Charles led the NFL in touchdowns (19) and first downs (104) and ranked second in yards from scrimmage (1,980 yards), recording the most receiving yards by a running back in Chiefs history, leading the AFC in rushing (1,287 yards).

Prior to returning to the NFL coaching ranks, Bieniemy spent two seasons (2011-12) at his alma mater, the University of Colorado, which was preceded by a tenure coaching running backs with the Minnesota Vikings (2006-10). In his five seasons with Minnesota, the Vikings produced a 1,000-yard rusher each year, while his stable of running backs broke the 100-yard mark 31 times in 80 regular season games. In 2006, he coached RB Chester Taylor, who rushed for 1,216 yards. The following season, Taylor and RB Adrian Peterson combined for 2,185 yards (1,341 by Peterson, who was All-Pro as a rookie). Peterson set a then-Vikings record with 1,760 yards in 2008, earning the Bert Bell Award as the Pro Football Player of the Year. Overall, Peterson totaled 5,782 rushing yards and 52 touchdowns in four seasons under Bieniemy's guidance.

Bieniemy elevated to the NFL ranks after three seasons as the running backs coach at UCLA (2003-05). While at UCLA, Bieniemy tutored former NFL RB Maurice Jones-Drew for three seasons at UCLA, where Jones-Drew earned Freshman All-America honors in 2003, before rushing for 1,007 yards in 2004 and earning consensus All-America honors as a kick returner in 2005.

Following his NFL playing career, Bieniemy served as an assistant at Thomas Jefferson High in Denver, prior to securing his first job as running backs coach with Colorado. In his first two seasons coaching the position, the Buffaloes ranked in the top-10 in the nation in rushing.

A second-round selection (39th overall) by the San Diego Chargers in the 1991 NFL Draft, Bienemy would go on to play nine seasons in the NFL, appearing in 142 career games for the Chargers (1991-94), Cincinnati Bengals (1995-98) and Philadelphia Eagles (1999). In 1994, Bieniemy helped lead the Chargers to an AFC Championship and an appearance in Super Bowl XXIX.

The West Covina, Calif., native is married to his wife, Mia, and the couple have two sons, Eric III and Elijah.