Fans displeased over Eric Bieniemy joining UCLA as Associate Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator - "The NFL f**ked him over"

Eric Bieniemy finally has a new job, but it is not what everyone has been expecting.

On Saturday, multiple sources reported that the UCLA Bruins had hired the former Kansas City Chiefs and Washington Commanders assistant as their new offensive coordinator and associate head coach. He had interviewed for the head coach position in Landover, Maryland, only for Dan Quinn to be selected instead.

Fans were very disappointed in the development, given his crucial role in creating a dynasty at Arrowhead:

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Why did NFL teams pass up on Eric Bieniemy?

The Eric Bieniemy saga represents one of the most surprising coaching snubs in recent NFL history, given his role in turning the Kansas City Chiefs into the league's newest overlords. When Dan Quinn was introduced as the Washington Commanders' head coach earlier this month, he had praise for the OC:

“I think he’s an excellent coach. I had a chance to visit with him today."

However, the Commanders instead settled for Kliff Kingsbury, former head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.

As for the reason behind the snub, offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr., who played for Bieniemy for two seasons and won Super Bowl LVII with him, told Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson on the Nightcap podcast that teams perceived him as rather antiquated, even though his approach to coaching mostly worked out fine:

"He's a great coach, but he's old school and he's gonna let you know. I've seen him get into it with 15 [Patrick Mahomes], (head) coach [Andy] Reid - he's the real deal. That's what I appreciated about him as a coach, his attention to detail he came with on a daily basis, his energy... Teams want to hire that young QB mind to lock him up for a long time."

The Ringer's Rodger Sherman, meanwhile, opines that he may have been shunned for reasons that have nothing to do with his coaching success - from poor interview performances to a history of legal issues:

"Never mind that he was trying to prepare for interviews in the midst of Super Bowl runs, or that he has clearly won over all the Chiefs players who ride for him—his inability to win over front-office suits apparently outweighs his on-field success.

"There could also presumably be some concerns about Bieniemy’s 2001 DUI arrest, his 1993 arrest for suspicion of harassment and assault on a parking lot attendant working a Colorado football game, and an arrest as a college sophomore for a bar fight."

Without Bieniemy, the Chiefs have since won another Super Bowl despite a seeming offensive regression - largely thanks to the defense and special teams.