We’ve heard that new Washington offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy was intense in practice. Some like that, others may not, but it’s clear the Commanders were happy to bring Bieniemy’s energy and offensive knowledge to Washington.
Team captains Jonathan Allen and Terry McLaurin, along with other prominent Commanders, such as Antonio Gibson, have praised Bieniemy.
As the Commanders opened OTAs last week, Bieniemy quickly made his presence felt on the practice field, once getting after quarterback Sam Howell. Howell was intercepted, which didn’t upset Bieniemy. Bieniemy wanted to see Howell go after the defender who picked him off.
Washington returned to the practice field Tuesday for the second day of OTAs, and Zach Selby of commanders.com was in attendance and stated, “Bieniemy appears to be getting more vocal with each practice.”
What upset Bieniemy on Tuesday?
Perhaps part of that was because the team planned on ending the day with two-minute drills (more on that later), but he was constantly reminding his players to pick up the pace and get in and out of the huddle with more urgency. “We need to wake up!” he yelled at one point. “We got work to do!”
While Bieniemy was pushing his offense, he had time to dish out praise, according to Selby, who noted that Bieniemy complimented wide receivers Dax Milne and Curtis Samuel for their route running.
If there was a team that needed to be pushed it was Washington. Bieniemy is bringing exactly what head coach Ron Rivera wanted to the practice field and in meetings. The next step is seeing if it translates to the field this fall.
The Commanders are back on the practice field Wednesday.