New rules proposal could help Eric Bieniemy find a head coaching job

According to a report from Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the NFL will be considering a significant rule change that could have a substantial impact on the league — and particularly on Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.

Proposed by the Buffalo Bills, the rule would prohibit teams from interviewing candidates for front office and coaching jobs until after each season’s conference title games — and require that hiring be done only after the Super Bowl.

Under existing rules, there are no overall restrictions — although franchises that want to interview current NFL employees must get permission from their current team to do so. In effect, this has given coaches and executives for playoff teams a disadvantage in the hiring process, since other candidates may be interviewed, hired and put to work earlier in the offseason.

Breer also noted that in the just-concluded hiring cycle, no fewer than five assistants from the four conference finalists (including Bieniemy and both Bills coordinators) had interview requests for open head coaching positions — but none of them were hired.

In fact, Bieniemy had requests to interview for all seven vacancies in this cycle, but just like after the last two offseasons — when he was also considered a top candidate for a head coaching job — he was coaching at least through the conference championship game.

Clearly, the Bills — like the Chiefs, who have long advocated on Bieniemy’s behalf — believe that their coordinators deserved more consideration for better opportunities with other teams. So when league owners meet virtually at the end of March, there should be at least two franchises that will offer strong support for this proposal.

How many more will join them?