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Why Andy Reid retirement rumors are here, and one big reason to dismiss them
Thanks to some offseason movement, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid is entering a new stage of his NFL journey.
As the elder statesman of the league’s head coaching fraternity.
With Pete Carroll stepping aside in Seattle, and Bill Belichick out in New England, Reid is now the oldest head coach in the league. That fact has opened the door to speculation that, following Super Bowl LVIII, Reid may step down, especially if the Chiefs knock off the San Francisco 49ers.
This is not the first Super Bowl media week that has been filled with rumors of Reid potentially riding off into the sunset. Just a year ago the Chiefs head coach sat down with Jay Glazer of FOX Sports for a pre-Super Bowl interview, and when Glazer asked him about retirement, Reid did not exactly dismiss the idea.
“I’m not getting any younger. I still have a young quarterback. I have a decision I have to make after this game,” said Reid ahead of last year’s Super Bowl.
Of course, you know how that story ended. Reid and the Chiefs came out on top in Super Bowl LVII, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles — his former team — by a final score of 38-35.
Now Reid is back for another Super Bowl, but the retirement rumors have spun up again. With a twist involving one of the other coaches identified in this story.
Belichick.
First was Craig Carton of FOX Sports, who said this back in January: “I think Bill Belichick will be the next head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs next year. I think that’s where he goes after Andy Reid retires after this year, which apparently there’s some smoke around him retiring.”
Up next? ESPN insider Adam Schefter, who also linked Belichick to Kansas City after the former New England Patriots head coach did not get the job in Atlanta. Appearing on Get Up, Schefter had this to say:
“If the Chiefs were to win the Super Bowl this year, could that, would that make [Reid] more likely to walk? And if he did walk, at that point in time, and you’re the Kansas City Chiefs, and Bill Belichick were still sitting out there, would that not be an interesting possibility, if that’s what Andy Reid decided to do? To go take a run at arguably the greatest coach of all time and to replace one legend with another?”
Schefter went on to make it clear that he was purely speculating, and “having fun.”
But the rumors did not stop.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk also addressed the issue, on an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show.
“I don’t know that Belichick would be a fit there, but there’s only one Patrick Mahomes,” said Florio in January. “And if I want to catch Brady and win a Super Bowl (like) he did when he left me, I’ll partner up with the guy that’s determined to catch Brady with seven total in a heartbeat.”
However, the rumors were slowly dismissed through other reporters. CBS Sports reporter Tracy Wolfson was among the first, noting that Reid still has two years left on his deal, and a retirement would be a “surprise” given conversations she has had:
Wolfson was joined by Nate Taylor, who covers the Chiefs for The Athletic. Speaking with Pat McAfee ahead of the AFC Championship Game, Taylor made it clear that according to his reporting, it would be a “shock” if Reid retired.
“There is no one in the Chiefs organization who has suggested anything of Andy Reid potentially retiring,” Taylor said on the Pat McAfee Show. “So, it would be a shock to me; I know it would be a shock to many people in the organization if that is a decision that Andy Reid ultimately makes.
“Whether it’s next week if the Chiefs lose to the Ravens or if it’s a couple weeks following the postseason with the Super Bowl — but no, I think Andy Reid is a football lifer. He’s got the best quarterback in the league, he’s got a roster full of talented and particularly young players … I still expect him to be the coach of the Kansas City Chiefs when they enter the 2024 season,” continued Taylor.
The idea of Reid retiring is certainly fascinating, and absolutely gets kicked into high gear when a name like Belichick’s is attached to such rumors. Of course, were Reid to step aside there would be no shortage of options to replace him, starting in house. The job Steve Spagnuolo has done with the Chiefs defense, along with his own head coaching experience, would make him an option. Kansas City special teams coach Dave Toub has long been mentioned as a potential head coach. Matt Nagy, the offensive coordinator, has his own head coaching experience.
And then their is Eric Bieniemy, who left Kansas City to become the offensive coordinator in Washington this past season. The fact that Bieniemy was back with the Chiefs ahead of the AFC Championship Game to speak with the team certainly raised some eyebrows.
But would the Chiefs still be … the Chiefs without Reid?
As you might expect, retirement questions surfaced at the start of Super Bowl Week.
In contrast with last year, Reid seemed more forceful with his answers.
“My mom and dad told me this when they were working,’’ Reid said earlier this week at the Super Bowl’s Opening Night. “They said, ‘You’ll know when it’s time,’ and I’m ready to go right now. Let’s go. That’s what they would tell me when I was young. I was an inquisitive kid and so that’s the way I look [at it]. Somewhere you’re going to know when it’s time. Today’s not the day.’
“I love being part of the organization,’’ Reid added. “It’s a great organization. And then we’ve won some games, but we’ve got to keep going. We’ve got to keep after this thing.’’
Ultimately, Reid’s decision to stay in Kansas City a little longer — and past Super Bowl LVIII, however the game unfolds — might come down to one reason.
Mahomes.
Reid gets to work with perhaps the definitive quarterback of this generation, which probably makes getting up in the morning a little bit easier each day.
That is a factor that Chiefs Chairman and Owner Clark Hunt pointed to earlier this week, speaking with Chris Russo on Tuesday’s episode of Mad Dog Unleashed.
“I have no sense from Andy that he’s ready to retire… He loves what he’s doing. I know he’s energized by the team that he has. I know he loves coaching Patrick Mahomes. He’s got a generational quarterback. So I look forward to having Andy as our head coach for many more years.”
A generational quarterback certainly does make the job more enjoyable.
The fact that Reid is now the elder statesman of the NFL coaching ranks probably means that the retirement rumors will never go away. And if the Chiefs win on Super Bowl Sunday, many will wonder if he indeed rides off into the sunset, denials aside.
Still, he has one pretty big reason to stick around as long as he wants.
A truly generational quarterback.
