Andy Reid is a truther about the New England Patriots’ defensive coordinator situation.
The Kansas City Chiefs coach fielded questions about the Patriots defense ahead of their matchup at Gillette Stadium in Week 14, and Reid took a bit of a tangent to discuss coach Bill Belichick.
“They’ve got a pretty good defensive coordinator right now,” Reid said on a conference call with New England media on Wednesday.
The Patriots haven’t named a defensive coordinator in 2019. They haven’t even openly discussed which coach is calling defensive plays. There are some major indications that safeties coach Steve Belichick is, at least, relaying plays. During games, Steve carries the defensive play sheet, and is in communication with players on the field. But Reid isn’t talking about Steve — he is talking about Bill, who the Chiefs coach believes is the real defensive coordinator.
“He does a good job,” Reid said. “You’re talking about the best in the business, and he’s doing a heck of a job. I’m sure he’s enjoying it. You get to our age — it’s one of the fun things you get to do.”
Reid went so far as to suggest that Belichick was calling plays. This would be a significant revelation, though Reid didn’t do anything to substantiate his claims, merely adding that he was studying the team’s defensive tendencies from a play-calling perspective.
Without a doubt, the Patriots have been aggressive. They have flexed their versatility in an amoeba front, which has gone a long way in stumping opposing quarterbacks. New England faces a major test, however, in Week 14. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is coming off an MVP season in 2018, though he has been hampered by an injury this year. But Reid said Mahomes has improved in his second year as the team’s starter. One of those improvements has come at the line of scrimmage, where Mahomes is getting better at reading defenses before the snap.
“He’ll probably need that this week, right?” Reid asked. “That’s something you’ve got to be ready for.”
Belichick will do everything he can to disguise and fool Mahomes on Sunday — the Patriots will be intent upon making sure the QB’s regression continues in 2019. The Patriots coach has long been one of the headiest game-plan designers in the NFL. That’s how New England has won six Super Bowls under Belichick. And that’s why Reid is looking forward to another matchup against his rival.
“We’re in it because of the competition. You love the opportunity to go against the best. You cherish that. … And Bill’s the best,” Reid said. “I look forward to that.”
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