Andy Reid’s four-word message to Giants HC John Harbaugh has turned the Chiefs into his inspiration for New York
John Harbaugh wants to do for the New York Giants what Andy Reid once did for the Kansas City Chiefs.
The 2026 NFL offseason has been a tough one for Kansas City Chiefs HC Andy Reid’s coaching tree. Two members of his coaching tree lost their head-coaching jobs: the Buffalo Bills fired HC Sean McDermott after 9 seasons, and the Baltimore Ravens fired HC John Harbaugh after 18 seasons. They were also two of the longest-tenured head coaches in the NFL.
Harbaugh, of course, has already found a new home with the New York Giants, where he had his introductory press conference on Tuesday. During that press conference, he spoke about the advice and message that Coach Reid offered to him as he embarked on this new journey.
Andy Reid gave John Harbaugh four words as he begins his new journey with the New York Football Giants
Speaking to media members on Tuesday, Harbaugh was asked about what he could learn from Coach Reid’s experience of going from one organization to another and maintaining a certain level of success.
“Andy (Reid) is a man of few words,” Harbaugh said. “His four words to me were, ‘Change can be good.’ That’s what he said. ‘Change can be good.’ He was excited. He was fired up for us. He’s a good friend, and how about this? We’ll sign up for that deal right now. What he did in Kansas City? Let’s do that.”
Reid, of course, came to Kansas City after spending 14 years as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. He turned a 2-14 Chiefs team into a playoff competitor in just a single season and set the franchise on a path of excellence.
He found a quarterback in Patrick Mahomes to mold into a superstar for an organization that had never truly drafted one. He led the franchise to its first Super Bowl win in 50 years, created a winning culture, and maintained it in unprecedented ways, with three consecutive Super Bowl berths (LVII, LVIII, and LIX). They won back-to-back titles for the first time since the New England Patriots did it in 2003 and 2004.
It’s certainly a situation worth modeling after if you’re Coach Harbaugh, but it’s also the exception and not the rule.
While Harbaugh hasn’t won a title since Super Bowl XLVII with the Ravens, he’s won the AP Coach of the Year (2019) and produced an MVP quarterback twice (Lamar Jackson in 2019 and 2023). There’s a lot that he can lean on, and perhaps going to New York is exactly the change he needs to be able to reach the mountaintop once more.
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