Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid learned a few valuable lessons amidst 2023 season struggles
Most football fans know the general things that make Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid great. He's an innovative play designer, elite play-caller and is well respected by his players and peers. However, it takes more than that to have the level of sustained success that Reid has had throughout his 25-year career as a […]
Most football fans know the general things that make Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid great. He's an innovative play designer, elite play-caller and is well respected by his players and peers. However, it takes more than that to have the level of sustained success that Reid has had throughout his 25-year career as a head coach.
There's an old phrase "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" that has been the undoing for many NFL coaches. That has not been the case for Reid. Even though he's a teacher, he remains teachable. His ability to roll with the times and adapt to new styles set him apart from the average coach. He displayed that on Tuesday while answering a question about what this season has taught him more than any other.
"I think what you’re seeing in the game today is these defensive coordinators – and I’ll tell you ours included – are very flexible with the coverages." Reid said, "So, it’s not just one or two coverages that they’re going to throw at you. They’re being able to teach multiple coverages, and they’re not afraid to use them at any time during the game. That’s where I’ll tell you the game has changed a little bit. As far as myself, obviously patience was one thing that we had to do on the offensive side as guys learned, the young guys learned, and the new guys learned. Very grateful for the job that (Defensive coordinator Steve) Spags did with the defensive side. I thought that they were a great example to everybody of taking young guys, teaching, them and watching them grow, like they had to do last year, and we were able to really come to a strength last year on defense for the playoffs and it kind of worked that way this year with the offense.”
As much as Reid is able to grow and evolve with the game, his patience and positive attitude has been just as important. He doesn't typically get too high or low and doesn't panic during adversity. When the Chiefs lost five of eight games during the regular season, Reid's steady leadership set the tone for them to turn things around.
Spagnuolo deserves a significant amount of credit as well. He has had the daunting task of getting a defensive unit full of young and inexperienced players to play at a championship level. Like Reid, Spagnuolo stays patient and open to new ways to succeed. Having two coaches with that level of experience and leadership is a big reason why K.C. has won three Super Bowls in the last five years.
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