Former Washington Redskins running back Ricky Ervins has a long history with new Commanders offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.
It stretches all the way back to their time in high school football in Southern California, when they were both running backs at rival high schools in the mid-1980s.
During a Friday appearance with 106.7 The Fan's Brian Mitchell and JP Finlay, Ervins recalled a number of stories about Bieniemy and why he's so excited about seeing Bieniemy thrive in his new position in Washington.
Ervins hilariously recalled when both backs were competing for the state rushing title in high school. In the final week of the season, Ervins heard Bieniemy only had 20 yards in the first half of his game across town, so Ervins felt safe taking a seat for the rest of his game.
By the time he woke up the next morning and read the box scores in the paper.... it was already too late.
"I had did my business that night and heard that EB only had 20 yards in the first half, they sat me down," Ervins said. "I'm like cool, I might get the rushing title. I woke up the next morning — the next morning, I woke up — and I look at the paper and I see 320 yards."
"He had 300 yards in the second half???" BMitch asked.
Ervins continued: "THREE HUNDRED YARDS! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"
BMitch has expressed a renewed sense of optimism surrounding the team, knowing that a coach like Bieniemy will bring accountability to the locker room that the team has long needed. Ervins seemed to share in that excitement. For both, it started with the words coming out of Bieniemy's mouth as he was introduced as the new OC.
"What I saw yesterday was the only change he's gonna have that other coaches didn't have previously was he's gonna be able to hold them accountable," BMitch said. "He's gonna expect a certain thing. And I think every player still wants that, it's just that most coaches don't give it, don't expect it."
"I don't know if any coaches even talk about it though, really, because the way that EB spoke about it, man, it was almost in every sentence that he talked about," Ervins said. "Someone approached a question for him, he always brought up that accountability. Which is so important. And we don't do that. We never think about that."
"We know we want to play for the guy next to us," he said. "But man, holding yourself accountable, knowing that you've got to go to strain to make this play, you know, they don't think about that. They're not used to it. And now we have to get in that rhythm of being consistent, of straining, and just having that blood, sweat and tears for your partner."
"For every good guy, there's a bad guy on the team," said BMitch. "You remember? Joe Gibbs was a good guy. [Redskins special teams coach] Wayne Sevier would curse your ass out. And you've got to have those people on your team. I just think that people don't understand that. Some coaches who are very quiet in their way, they need to have those other coaches around them that will step in your chest if you said something wrong."
"See that's why I'm hoping that these guys have, you know, to be in the NFL, you have to have thick skin regardless, because you've gone through a lot of stuff in the course of your life," Ervins said. "But again, with EB, EB brings a different energy. And you're really gonna have to have some thick skin, because I'm telling you, he's gonna pull everything — everything — out of you. And if you're not ready for that man, you're gonna have problems."
"I just think that that's something that's needed inside that locker room, inside that building," said BMitch. "Because we've had talent for years. We just don't get to our top level because I don't think the people that are basically the jockeys, the coaches riding you, are not giving you that thought that I have to get the absolute best out of you."
"Because sometimes when those players leave our team, they go elsewhere and go crazy," Ervins said. "Because they didn't get that stuff pulled out of them, that other person out of them. And I think EB is gonna do it, man. I'm so excited, I can't wait."
