{"id":678361,"date":"2026-06-01T18:59:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T18:59:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/678361\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T18:59:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T18:59:17","slug":"patrick-mahomes-is-all-in-on-eric-bieniemys-return-chiefs-ota-takeaways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/678361\/","title":{"rendered":"Patrick Mahomes is all in on Eric Bieniemy\u2019s return: Chiefs OTA takeaways"},"content":{"rendered":"

KANSAS CITY, Mo. \u2014 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes wasn\u2019t the only one loudly celebrating touchdowns<\/a> during Thursday\u2019s organized team activities practice open to reporters.<\/p>\n

After Mahomes\u2019 second TD strike to receiver Xavier Worthy, a voice boomed from behind the line of scrimmage.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s go!\u201d Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy screamed from his vantage point behind the play, loud enough that reporters across the field could hear him.<\/p>\n

It was far from the only sign that Bieniemy had returned to Chiefs practices after a three-year hiatus.<\/p>\n

The Chiefs\u2019 running backs, on passing drills, finished every snap by running all the way to the far end zone \u2014 most of the time more than 50 yards away. The exercise is meant to reiterate Bieniemy\u2019s constant message to his guys to finish plays the right way.<\/p>\n

So what does Mahomes think about having that energy back around the Chiefs\u2019 facility?<\/p>\n

\u201cI love it, man,\u201d Mahomes said. \u201cI truly do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahomes believes there\u2019s a standard that players must practice and play to, and Bieniemy is someone who ensures you reach that level. Bieniemy also isn\u2019t one to play favorites, demanding the same of a superstar player in drills as he does of an undrafted rookie.<\/p>\n

While Mahomes says most of his teammates haven\u2019t seen the real\u00a0Bieniemy yet \u2014 he typically reaches an even higher level of intensity during training camp \u2014 the guys have responded well to his demanding style so far.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though it\u2019s hard \u2014 there\u2019s hard days \u2014 they know why we\u2019re doing it,\u201d Mahomes said. \u201cI think you can see the guys, they want to be great, and they want to be better than we were last year. And so we\u2019ve had a good start to these OTAs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahomes has appreciated having Bieniemy back in the meeting rooms as well. Bieniemy\u2019s confidence comes across in presentations, and Mahomes says that swagger has led to greater focus on the preached details.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been exciting to me,\u201d Mahomes said. \u201cThat first meeting had me wanting to run through a brick wall.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bieniemy isn\u2019t the only noticeable change in practices from a year ago.<\/p>\n

First-year receivers coach Chad O\u2019Shea continues to be one of the most vocal members of the staff. One example from Thursday was during 11-on-11 drills, when O\u2019Shea saw rookie receiver Cyrus Allen jogging out of the huddle to his position out wide.<\/p>\n

\u201cC\u2019mon, Cyrus, get lined up!\u201d O\u2019Shea bellowed, loud enough to be heard a practice field away.<\/p>\n

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Thursday he appreciates what Bieniemy and O\u2019Shea have brought to the team from an energy standpoint.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou notice it,\u201d Reid said. \u201cI think they love what they\u2019re doing, and they\u2019re not afraid to express that. The players feel it. I think that\u2019s healthy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other things stood out from Thursday\u2019s practice, which was open to reporters. Here are a few tidbits:<\/p>\n

A surprise at right tackle<\/p>\n

As Reid noted during his interview session, second-year player Esa Pole rotated in with the first team at right tackle.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s certainly something that\u2019ll be worth watching in future weeks. The Chiefs\u2019 expected starter at the position is Jaylon Moore, who signed a two-year, $30 million free-agent deal with the team in 2025. His $18.7 million cap charge in 2026 was set to be seventh among all NFL right tackles, according to Over the Cap\u2019s data<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Moore, though, was inconsistent last season while splitting 15 games between left and right tackle. He also battled a knee injury late in the year.<\/p>\n

Pole, a second-year pro and former undrafted free agent out of Washington State, played five games at left tackle for the Chiefs in late 2025. Most of that time came while Moore was sidelined.<\/p>\n

The 6-foot-7, 319-pound Pole has a unique story<\/a>, as he didn\u2019t start playing football until junior college. Reid said he was pleased with Pole\u2019s work this offseason.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe looks strong out there,\u201d Reid said. \u201cHe\u2019s a smart kid when you really get to know him. He really doesn\u2019t have a ton of experience, but he\u2019s a smart kid, and he gets it. So he\u2019s getting reps in there with the starters and kind of rotating in.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n Chiefs wide receiver Jalen Royals is getting more opportunities this spring after dealing with a knee injury last year. (Stephen R. Sylvanie \/ Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Strong start for Jalen Royals<\/p>\n

One of the highlight plays of seven-on-sevens was Mahomes completing a pass over the middle to receiver Jalen Royals, who plucked the ball out of the air in tight coverage with an all-hands catch.<\/p>\n

\u201cGreat job!\u201d Mahomes yelled to his teammate.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an important time for Royals, who sat out most of last season while dealing with a lingering knee injury. The Chiefs selected Royals in the fourth round of the 2025 draft.<\/p>\n

Reid noted that Royals was getting additional first-team reps in OTAs with teammate Rashee Rice serving a 30-day jail sentence<\/a> in Texas.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe looks strong out here and is running well, that whole deal,\u201d Reid said of Royals. \u201cIt\u2019s great for him \u2014 and the quarterbacks \u2014 to see what he\u2019s all about on repeated reps.\u201d<\/p>\n

Secondary highlights<\/p>\n

It\u2019s more difficult for defensive players to stand out during these practices, as most passing drills without a true pass rush favor the offense. The Chiefs\u2019 cornerbacks also spent part of Thursday working on technique, attempting to defend receivers while wearing boxing sparring mitts \u2014 accessories seemingly used to put greater focus on their footwork.<\/p>\n

The secondary still came through with some highlights. First-round rookie Mansoor Delane had an early pass breakup, and he seems to be progressing as expected.<\/p>\n

Cornerback\/safety Chris Roland-Wallace, meanwhile, also knocked down a pass, and we shouldn\u2019t forget about him as a rotation player as the Chiefs solidify their 2026 secondary. The former undrafted free agent played in 11 games for the Chiefs \u2014 starting two \u2014 before suffering a season-ending back injury last season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KANSAS CITY, Mo. \u2014 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes wasn\u2019t the only one loudly celebrating touchdowns during…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":678362,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[399,1236,398,396,397,99],"class_list":["post-678361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ncaa-football","tag-football","tag-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-ncaa","tag-ncaa-football","tag-ncaafootball","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678361","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=678361"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678361\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=678361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=678361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=678361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}