Bieniemy: “It’s been this way for the past six months. ... It’s been a challenge."
The COVID-19 crisis has changed sports as we know it over the last year, leading to empty stadiums, constant testing and altered living situations for players and coaches alike. For Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, 2020 served as perhaps the most challenging season of his career.
Bieniemy detailed his difficult 2020 in a story by Sports Illustrated's Jenny Vrentas on Thursday. He said he lived in a hotel from July through Super Bowl LV, doing so in order to isolate himself from his wife, Mia, and their two sons. Bieniemy’s older son, Eric III, has cerebral palsy and respiratory issues, making him a high-risk candidate for contracting COVID-19. With his son's health at the forefront of his mind, Bieniemy made the sacrifice to leave those he loves most.
"It’s been this way for the past six months,” Bieniemy said before Super Bowl LV. “It’s been a challenge.”
Bieniemy said he stayed in a hotel for six nights a week during the season. He returned home each Friday night and wore two masks. He also slept in the basement away from his family. Hopefully, circumstances can change for Bieniemy and his family ahead of the 2021 season.
Kansas City's offensive coordinator is far from the only NFL figure to be impacted by COVID-19 this year. Tom Brady's father suffered a severe case of coronavirus in September, while Chiefs offensive lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardif opted out of the season to work as a doctor during the COVID-19 crisis. 2020 has been the strangest year in sports history. And with the 2021 NFL season just over six months away, we aren't out of the woods quite yet.