Chiefs Rumors: Eric Bieniemy mistake, Danny Shelton out, Charles HOF case

2023-09-21 08:57

Did the Chiefs actually make a mistake by letting Eric Bieniemy make a lateral move to a new team this offseason?

Jamaal Charles nominated for Pro Football Hall of Fame

Longtime Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles has been officially nominated for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame according to the NFL's announcement.

Following a nomination, 15 players from the slate of modern-era players will be presented to the selection committee later this season. There are 173 nominees, so selection to be inducted is a true honor for the few that will ultimately be inducted in 2025.

What are Charles' chances like? Here's how he stacks up in Approximate Value --
a stat created and maintained by Pro Football Reference -- with other running backs in the pool of 173.

Warrick Dunn -- 124
Tiki Barber -- 122
Ricky Watters -- 122
Fred Taylor -- 109
Ahman Green -- 96
Steven Jackson -- 93
Priest Holmes -- 92
Corey Dillon -- 91
Ricky Williams -- 91
Eddie George -- 90
Charlie Garner -- 82
Chris Johnson -- 81
Brian Westbrook -- 80
Jamal Lewis -- 80
Eric Metcalk -- 78
Thomas Jones -- 78
Shaun Alexander -- 77
Jamaal Charles -- 74
Chris Warren -- 71
Terry Allen -- 71
Larry Centers -- 69
Robert Smith -- 67
Stephen Davis -- 66
Dorsey Levens -- 62
Mike Alstott -- 59
Jamaal Anderson -- 53
Daryl Johnston -- 29
Tony Richardson -- 26
Glyn Milburn -- 21
Lorenzo Neal -- 18
John Kuhn -- 12
Vonta Leach -- 8
Larry Centers

Pro Football Reference also provides a handy Hall of Fame monitor tool that gives Charles a score of 41.35. He ranks 57th among running backs (33rd among backs not already inducted into the Hall) in the metric currently, and PF-Ref notes that the average induction score for a running back is nearly 107.

With that considered, it looks unlikely that Charles will actually receive a gold jacket, though the nomination should be considered an achievement in its own right.

Throughout his career with the Chiefs, Broncos, and Jaguars, Charles accumulated over 7,500 yards and rushed over 150 times in five different seasons. He averaged 63.6 yards per game, 5.4 yards per attempt, and scored 44 touchdowns, all but one of them with the Chiefs.

Charles is a Chiefs legend regardless of if he's ultimately selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Danny Shelton: Decisively not a Chiefs legend

Far less memorable for Chiefs fans years down the road will be Danny Shelton, who has been released from the practice squad. Drafted in the first round by the Browns in 2015, Shelton's career has not had the longevity one would hope for from a first-round pick.

While there may be a path for the Chiefs to re-sign him after moving some pieces around in the near future, it's likely another team with easier space to clear to sign him may swoop in with the hope that he's still a short while away from being NFL ready.

His cut further emphasizes that Shelton's path to making an active roster again is an uphill climb.

Shelton has played in 101 games and made a combined 278 tackles, 138 of them solo. Additionally, he's put up six sacks and 19 quarterback hits.

After Kansas City squared things away with defensive tackle Chris Jones and his contract, depth was not so much of an issue at the position. Barring injuries or some other lapse in availability, Shelton was likely not going to see much field time anyway.

Possibly, the eight-year veteran could be closing in on the end of his NFL career.

Did the Chiefs really make a mistake with Eric Bieniemy?

These numbers need to be taken with a spoonful of salt, because we are, after all, just two weeks into the NFL season. But so far, the Chiefs watching Eric Bieniemy walk out the door into a lateral new position looks like a miserable choice.

Look at how things have changed for the Commanders and Chiefs in offensive rank:

Points: Chiefs down 21; Commanders up 17
Yards: Chiefs down 8; Commanders up 1

Washington does have a new full-time starting quarterback in Sam Howell, but the general consensus is he's not muchbetter than Taylor Heinicke.

Yet, with similar weapons in 2023, Bieniemy is making this team look pretty good as offensive coordinator, while the Chiefs are looking somewhat tepid under new (but also old) coordinator Matt Nagy.

Kansas City's receivers are returning to form after a terrible start, and the team does have a pretty good quarterback under center, so they should be just fine. But would they be even better, more tactical with Eric Bieniemy calling the plays?

Probably.

It also has to be recalled that Bieniemy's departure was not all up to the Chiefs. His contract was up and there was nothing tying him to Kansas City. It's not as if he got the boot.

In his introductory presser with Washington, he was fairly clear that part of his reasoning for going to Washington was to embrace discomfort. Bieniemy has been passed over for head coaching jobs, and going to Washington and finding success would do much more for his resume than continuing to win with what some have pointed to as a "stacked cast" for him to work with in Kansas City.

So did Kansas City screw this one up? Or is this a nothingburger story?

The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. The Chiefs may have been able to be more aggressive to keep Bieniemy, but they also probably recognized that the moment had passed for both parties.

Let's remember, there are 15 games left to be played.