MIAMI — Spend a few minutes listening to Andy Reid talk about his team, his players, or his family and it’s easy to understand why every member of the Kansas City Chiefs absolutely loves their head coach and why they want nothing more than to watch him hoist the Lombardi Trophy high into the air on Sunday night.
Reid knows how to carry a room. He’s done it every day this week here in Miami while talking about how fun it is to work with Patrick Mahomes, or how excited he is for his players to compete in the Super Bowl, or how his numerous grandkids continue to keep him feeling both young and old at the same time.
It’s just special.
Travis Kelce, who could only smile this week while talking about “Big Red,” was one of a number of players to explain to me this week why he loves his coach so much. Kelce was also proud to share that a number of Reid’s former players have reached out to the star tight end since the AFC Championship Game to tell him how much they want the Chiefs to get Reid his first Super Bowl victory.
The Chiefs are in love with Big Red, for many reasons. And here they explain why:
Travis Kelce, TE
I love him for giving me a chance to play in the National Football League. I love him for the trust that he gives me out on the football field to find a way to help his team win. All I can do is go out there and play my tail of for him every single time. You gotta love (his) swagger, man. The shirts. He’s like a vet in the game when it comes to the sneakers – people don’t know. Hs’s had the Dads, the old Monarchs, and the Air Force 1’s on for years.
Frank Clark, LB
His heart. Coach Reid has a big heart. I’ve played for Pete Carroll and great coaches in college but coach Reid, his heart is like gold. He’s been through so much, he’s been through some stuff. Just dealing with his family and the things he’s had to overcome with his son – he’s a true inspiration to a lot of us out here who really need that guidance or can understand the struggle. Hats off to coach and everything he does for us. It’s the little things that people don’t understand what he does for us that gives us the extra edge.
There’s nothing more I want to do in this world than get coach his Super Bowl.
Patrick Mahomes, QB
The love he has for the game, I mean it’s unmatched. With the work ethic and the time he puts in, but at the same time he’s able to enjoy every single minute of it and have fun doing it. So the way he’s able to relate to everyone and have a sense of humor but still be serious enough to get the best out of us is what’s gotten us here and is why we’re on this stage.
Tyreek Hill, WR
I love the fact that he’s always willing to listen to you no matter what. With my circumstances and what I went through I was able to talk to coach Reid after those things and he was honest and told me what he thought and gave me real life advice. Most guys don’t appreciate it, but I really appreciate coach Reid for being there for me.
Dustin Colquit, P
He’s a family man – I’ve got five kids, he’s got five kids. We have a lot of similarities in that aspect. He was a punter, which if I’m ever punting he’ll let me know every few years, ‘You know I was a punter, an All-City punter.’ And I’m like, “Oh yeah, I saw the Punt, Pass, and Kick(video)’ and he’ll kind of give you the look. He’s just a great man, somebody that is fun to play for which is why everyone wants to win for him because when you come into a system like his, not only do you thrive and want to come into work but he changes your life – that’s the easy way to say it. He changes the way you go about doing things and he always gives you a fresh perspective on how to approach something and so he kind of changes the way you go about your business as well.
Harrison Butker, K
I love his consistency.
One thing he always tells us is ‘I’ll never say anything negative to the media that I haven’t told you to your face first,’ I think that shows how much he cares about us. If we have a bad loss or something he’ll come in on Tuesday lighthearted, you know ‘We’re gonna learn from the film but we’ve moved on’ and he always has those one-liners that are so funny. Every meeting he has a one-liner that is really funny. It’s unique, it’s Andy Reid, it’s awesome and I love that about him.
Anthony “Sausage” Sherman, FB
I think it’s that he just treats us like men and that he has a great sense of humor. He keeps it alive and fun and young. For him to go out there and do the stuff that he does is phenomenal.
He calls me “sausage,” I think he comes up with a lot of food nicknames. His personality and his heart are the biggest things. He loves all of his players. He just has a great heart for the game and loves doing what he does.
I’m working on a piece on Chiefs players explaining what they love the most about Andy Reid and this from Anthony Sherman on why Reid calls him “sausage” is too good: pic.twitter.com/B032J64K8E
— Andy Nesbitt (@anezbitt) January 30, 2020
Eric Bieniemy, Offensive Coordinator
He’s just like a big mentor, a father figure, he has an authoritative way about him – and he does have a mean streak. He’s an intelligent coach but he’s a guy who you can always go and talk to about anything. That’s what makes coach Reid special. His door is always open and there is nothing too small or too big that you can’t talk about. He just embraces people and I think that’s what made him the lovable and respected coach that he is. If you’ve known him for years you’ll hear guys say the same exact thing about him – from his days when he coached in Green Bay to the days he coached in Philly – people love him. He just has that personality that everybody wants to be around.
Demarcus Robinson, WR
Just his personality and the way he connects with his guys. We love him. We want him to get this ring and get this trophy. I love being on this team with him.
He gives a lot of advice – I could go from coaching to just life lessons. He gives us lessons every day just watching him and being coached by him is a lesson to me. If you have anything to talk about you can go to his office and talk to him and he’s just a normal guy.
Matt Moore, Backup QB
Just his personality and the way he goes about every day. He cares about guys as people and players. He’s just a fun person and is fun to be around. He’s got a great way of motivating that you appreciate it. He’s just a good guy with a great personality. He’s got sound effects when he talks, he constantly has hand motions going and he’s just fun to be around.
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