Tag: Andy Reid

NFL fans had so many jokes about Andy Reid’s foggy face mask

Reid coached just fine with it.

An actual regular-season NFL game was played in 2020 on Thursday, with the Kansas City Chiefs picking up where they left off in the Super Bowl and looking unstoppable with a Week 1 win over the Houston Texans.

One notable difference between this season and last? Of course there are precautions being taken with COVID-19 still a concern, and Chiefs head coach Andy Reid decided to wear a face shield while on the sidelines.

The only problem? It fogged up quite a bit, and the photos of it are pretty great. Naturally, that led to a lot of jokes made on Twitter.

Here’s a sampling:

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Chiefs HC Andy Reid’s foggy face shield was talk of Twitter during Week 1

Andy Reid had some trouble with his face shield during the season opener.

Kansas City Chiefs HC Andy Reid had a bit of a wardrobe malfunction during the Week 1 tilt with the Houston Texans.

Everyone is adjusting to the new COVID-19 protocols, especially the folks on the sideline who are required to wear masks throughout the course of the game. Reid started the night with a mask on, but he ultimately switched to a face shield for the majority of the game, presumably to make calling plays a bit easier.

The problem, however, was that the weather was rainy and humid in Kansas City. Reid’s face shield began to fog up and caused him some problems throughout the game. Twitter, of course, had a field day with it.

Check it out:

After the game, Reid had a few things to say about his fogged-up face shield.

“That was brutal,” Reid told KSHB-TV reporter Aaron Ladd. “I didn’t do very good with that thing. But listen, it’ll be better the next time. I appreciate you asking that, though, it was a bit of a mess.”

There you have it. This might not be the last time you see Reid rocking the face shield during the season. Next time, however, it might be equipped with some sort of anti-fogging device. Perhaps he’ll get his own personal attendant to wipe it down throughout the game.

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Chiefs go against type, play bully-ball to take Texans defense to the woodshed

The Texans wanted to keep Kansas City’s passing game in front of their defense. That worked, but it also unleashed a new power run game.

When the Texans put their defensive game plan together for their rematch of their defensive implosion in the 2019 divisional round, it was clear that things were going to be different. Instead of “challenging” Patrick Mahomes and his dynamic array of receivers with man coverage — a “strategy” that proved historically disastrous — new defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver decided to play more zone defense. Specifically, zone defense with two deep safeties. The idea, as Weaver explained on Monday, was to keep everything in front of his outmatched secondary.

“I was hoping with all the COVID protocols that maybe they give us an extra player to play with on defense, but we couldn’t talk the league into that,” Weaver joked. “Obviously, they have a tremendous amount of skill players and it all starts with the quarterback. He makes it all go. Then the guys they have to throw the ball to, whether it’s [Travis] Kelce or Tyreek Hill, [Mecole)]Hardman, Sammy Watkins. You can’t have two guys on all of them. So, they present a tremendous challenge and we’re going just do our best to try to keep them in front of us and limit the explosive plays that they feed off of and try to get every time they touch the ball.”

Well, it worked — to a degree. In the first half, Mahomes completed 20 of 25 passes, but managed just 173 yards. He did throw two touchdown passes, but Weaver was able to limit what Mahomes usually likes to do.

In the first half, with less than 2.5 seconds to throw, Mahomes completed 10 of 11 passes for 78 yards and both touchdowns and a 135.8 passer rating, per Next Gen Stats. He wasn’t able to get anything deep going, and while that may have been a relative problem for Andy Reid’s offense in 2019, it isn’t now. The primary reasons for that? The acquisition of two players: First-round running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire out of LSU, and free-agent offensive guard Kelechi Osemele, signed by the team in July. Edwards-Helaire adds a combination of rushing power and pass-catching flexibility, and Osemele brings an ability to take the defensive lineman in front of him, and pancake the guy right out of the picture.

As a result, a Chiefs offense that was all about flash-and-dash in 2019 brought a series of haymakers to Houston’s defense.

Mahomes’ first touchdown pass was a quick one to tight end Travis Kelce…

…and his second, to receiver Sammy Watkins, was basically a power pitch to the right side.

Meanwhile, Edwards-Helaire was blowing up Houston’s defense in the first half, and doubled down with 11:01 left in the third quarter. This gave the rookie 102 rushing yards in his first NFL game, with more potentially to come. Not bad for a guy who didn’t have a preseason.

Up 24-7, the Chiefs have already made a clear statement to the rest of the NFL: You may have a way to at least slow down our point-per-minute passing game, but now, if you do, we’ll just bleed the clock, wear down your defense, and run the ball right down your throat. And if Weaver decides to pull his safeties down to deal with the ground game? Well, it’s bombs away from there.

Texans 100: Facts and Figures for Chiefs, No. 51-75

The facts continue as we look at Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid and the Houston Texans when Clete Blakeman is the referee.

The facts continue as the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs get ready for a 7:20 p.m. CT kickoff from Arrowhead Stadium.

Next up on the way to 100 facts are Chiefs coach Andy Reid and referee Clete Blakeman.

Facts and Figures for Chiefs, No. 1-25

Facts and Figures for Chiefs, No. 26-50

Andy Reid facts

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

51. Reid is 13-8 on Opening Day with a 3-5 record at home.

52. Reid is 8-2 against the Texans with a 4-1 record at home, including playoffs.

53. Reid’s 8-2 career record against the Texans is the best he’s compiled against an AFC South opponent:

Texans: 8-2

Jaguars: 5-2

Colts: 3-6

Titans: 2-8

 

54. Reid is 7-7 in Week 1’s following a playoff season with a 2-4 record at home.

55. Reid is 47-42 in prime time, including playoffs, with a 20-20 record at home.

56. Reid is 45-26 in September with a 21-13 record at home.

57. Reid is 59/125 on challenges for his career with a 4/8 record in 2019.

58. The Chiefs scored 451 points last year, the second-highest point total of Reid’s coaching career.

59. Though no longer the longest tenured coach in the league, Andy Reid has not stopped head coaching since 1999, the longest streak amongst active coaches.

60. Among active coaches, Andy Reid has the most assistants in head coaching jobs: Ron Rivera, Doug Pederson, Sean McDermott, Matt Nagy, and John Harbaugh.

61. Among current coaches, Reid’s 11 total division titles are second to only Belichick’s 17.

62. Among current head coaches, Reid has the second-most conference title game appearances with seven behind Bill Belichick’s 12.

63. Reid and John Fox are the only coaches to have faced Belichick both in the Super Bowl and in the AFC Championship Game.

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Texans vs. Chiefs: Time, TV schedule and streaming info for Week 1

The Houston Texans and the Kansas City Chiefs kickoff the 2020 NFL season Thursday night. Don’t miss the action. Find out how you can see the game.

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The Houston Texans and the Kansas City Chiefs square off underneath the bright lights at Arrowhead Stadium to kick off the first game of pandemic football. Welcome to 2020.

Houston has undergone significant changes in the offseason with coach and general manager Bill O’Brien trading away three-time All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins. The Texans’ offense now consists of a speedy receiving corps that includes Randall Cobb, Brandin Cooks, Will Fuller, and Kenny Stills. The philosophy is to allow quarterback Deshaun Watson to determine where to place the football; to take advantage of his ability to read defenses and pick them apart. The Texans also have defensive end J.J. Watt returning from a torn pectoral muscle to beef up the pass rush.

The Chiefs return to Arrowhead Stadium, the site where they thumped Houston 51-31 in the AFC divisional playoffs, to prove that it wasn’t a fluke, not even their successful Super Bowl run that saw Kansas City mount comebacks in every round of the postseason. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes earned a big contract from the Chiefs, and Kansas City has added more firepower in the backfield with former LSU running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire.

The sports world will be also interested to see what happens when two NFL teams finally play one another in the era of COVID-19. The Texans and Chiefs have been in their own bubbles for the month of August. Afterwards, can the Texans continue their massive winning streak of negative COVID tests?

To get ready for the Opening Night action here is important game day information so you can catch the game. Follow the @TheTexansWire and @therealmarklane.

Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs — Thursday, Sept. 10 at 7:20 p.m. CT

TV channel: NBC (Al Michaels and Chris Collinsworth)

Radio: Sports Radio 610 (KILT-AM & 100.3 FM), Mega 101 (KLOL-FM) (Marc Vandermeer & Andre Ware)

Location: Arrowhead Stadium

Forecast: Rainy, 60 degrees, 8 mph wind

Referee: Clete Blakeman

Odds: Chiefs -9.0

Chiefs HC Andy Reid ready for challenge of facing new Texans DC Anthony Weaver

The Houston Texans have a rookie defensive coordinator this season, but Andy Reid has plenty of respect for Anthony Weaver and his defense.

The Kansas City Chiefs aren’t facing the same old Houston Texans team that forfeited a 24-point lead in the playoffs.

One of the biggest changes the Texans made this offseason was the decision to have defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel take a step back. They promoted defensive line coach Anthony Weaver to defensive coordinator. Weaver had served as the defensive line coach in Houston since 2016 and he’ll still maintain that position along with calling the plays on the defensive side of the ball.

Chiefs HC Andy Reid spoke on the challenge of facing the new defensive coordinator without any preseason tape on his playcalling.

“Yeah, so Anthony Weaver is a heck of a football coach, was a heck of a player, and now he’s having a chance to coordinate,” Reid told reporters. “So, as there is with every first game, there’s some unknown. I think they’d probably tell you the same thing. But you go in and you’ve got to stay true to what you do and be able to execute—both sides of the ball and special teams—knowing that there could be a wrinkle here or there.”

Reid won’t be able to go back to much of the Texans’ defensive tape from last season and rely on it as gospel. He’ll have to expect the unexpected from Weaver. At the same time, Weaver seems to anticipate the same type of strategy from the Chiefs. He’s been looking back at the past two tapes and beyond to better discern offensive tendencies in Kansas City.

“You have to, you have to,” Weaver said of looking back at last season’s tape. “They’re obviously an opponent that we’re really familiar with. They’re going to look at those two games as well and it’s always a chess match. You want to show him looks that you showed in that last game and maybe do something different. You want to use some of the things that you did that worked. You’re absolutely studying that and most coaches, I think, you’re going back even further than that. This is a team we’ve played —you know you watch the two Patrick Mahomes games — they played them with Alex Smith. I believe they played in 2015 before I got here. So you want to see schematically some of the things that Coach Reid and their staff have done.”

Unfortunately for Weaver, Reid and Mahomes have a way of being tendency breakers. It’ll pose a challenge for Weaver in his first start as a defensive coordinator, just as the mystery of a new coach in charge will pose a challenge for the Chiefs as they continue to prepare for Week 1.

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Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes speaks on rivalry with Texans QB Deshaun Watson

Chiefs’ Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes discuss rivalry with Texans’ Deshaun Watson.

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The Kansas City Chiefs open the 2020 NFL regular season on Thursday, Sept. 10, hosting the Houston Texans. The two teams met twice last season, splitting both memorable games at Arrowhead Stadium. The headline players discussed then and now remain quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. It’s a budding rivalry between two young star quarterbacks.

Both players have been compared in numerous ways ranging from racial background to revolutionizing the position in today’s era. Watson hasn’t found success in the postseason as of yet, but has shown flashes of brilliance, leading Houston. The quarterbacks were both given well-deserved extensions this offseason. Many hope the extensions will lead to more exciting games to come between the two players, a sentiment echoed by Mahomes during Sunday’s press conference.

“You see that Deshaun [Watson] and the Texans are a great football team,” Mahomes said. “There’s a lot of great talent around him, and he makes a lot of big plays in big games. I think I said something to him last year at the end of the game, that we’re going to have these battles for a long time. We’re two opponents in the same conference in the AFC, so I’m sure I’ll see a lot of games against him.”

The Chiefs were able to overcome a considerable first-half deficit to defeat Watson’s Texans during last year’s divisional playoff game. Andy Reid shared his thoughts on both players’ extensions and their bright futures while speaking with reporters.

“I think it’s great,” Reid said. “I’m happy for Deshaun, for the opportunity that he has to make a living. You can see the response of his family and how they felt there, and likewise with Patrick. So, I think it’s great for the National Football League. Individually, it’s great for them and their teams, but also the league. We’re blessed right now to have a transition to these young quarterbacks that are coming in. They’re fun to watch, so I think it’s great for the game.”

Thursday night won’t hold the same significance as their last meeting, but it will still have the country watching with high expectations. The Chiefs’ road to another Super Bowl begins with a familiar foe at Arrowhead Stadium.

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Chiefs HC Andy Reid eager to see his team in 2020 debut vs. Texans

Reid is eager to see what the 2020 iteration of the Kansas City Chiefs looks like in action.

The anticipation for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season is reaching critical mass. We’re just several days away from seeing the Kansas City Chiefs open the season against the Houston Texans at Arrowhead Stadium. For Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, he’s eager to finally see what he’s got in the 2020 iteration of his football team. He’s particularly anxious to see how they perform under the lights on game day.

“Yeah, I think even more so this year,” Reid told reporters on Friday. “I mean, it just seems, without the preseason games, you normally have a little bit of a lead-up and you have a good idea of the guys are going to react under the lights or on game day – in our case under the lights. But we haven’t had that and so yeah, I’m curious to see how everything works out and how the team gels together and every year is a little different and you’ve got to work through all that.”

The Chiefs return 18 starters from Super Bowl LIV, but they still have new players to integrate into their roster. This will be the first time the rookies suit up for an NFL game with no dress rehearsal. How the new players handle their first game jitters will be paramount.

The entire team will also be faced with the typical challenges of the first game of the NFL season — not quite knowing what to expect from the opponent.

“Yeah listen, the first game is always a little bit that way because you’re never quite sure what the other team’s going to do,” Reid said. “They’re not sure exactly what we’re going to do. I mean, that’s just even with the preseason games, you know the first game is – really the first three games – you’re kind of up in the air and not sure exactly what you’re going to get presented. But that’s the way it works every year. Now, I’m curious to see how the teams play. You know I think it’s going to be, like I said, I think it’s going to be a well-played game, but I’ll be curious to see how it all goes.”

There’s only so much you can plan for without any new game tape on your opponents. Reid can go back and have guys study the postseason game and the regular-season game against Houston last year, but you have to be careful with how much you study that old tape. It’s best to prepare for the unexpected.

Making in-game adjustments will be crucial for every team as they face some hiccups throughout those first few games. There will probably be some penalties and sloppy play early on in the season. Reid almost seems to expect it, especially without any preseason games to work out the kinks in all three phases of the game.  Luckily, the coaching staff in Kansas Cty has a good history of making adjustments on the fly.

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What does Chiefs HC Andy Reid tell players who don’t make the 53-man roster?

Andy Reid shared the advice he gives to young players who don’t make the Chiefs’ 53-man roster.

The most difficult time of the year in the NFL is nearly here.

As players are released in 53-man roster cuts, it’s easy to overlook the human aspect of it. These players are losing their jobs, they’re being told that their dream of making an NFL roster isn’t happening, at least with the teams they spent the offseason with. It’s a tough reality of the business of the NFL.

It’s an especially tough day for the coaches and front office staff that have to speak to the players and tell them they’re being released. For Andy Reid, he tries to keep thing positive. From the get-go, he tells the players to hold no illusions about roster cuts. The advice he gives young players, though will help them when the next opportunity arises.

“We tell them in the beginning, ‘Listen, not everyone is going to make our football team, but make it as hard as you possibly can on us to make that decision,’” Reid said. “And don’t count the numbers in the line, just go play. Whether it’s special teams or offense or defense, then you don’t have to look back on that. Then also stay in tune with your strengths and your weaknesses. If you do get released, then you have an opportunity to work on the weaknesses and potentially get another shot.”

Reid wants his players to give it everything they’ve got, to make the decision tough on the evaluators. It’s not for his sake either, it’s so that the players have nothing to be disappointed with. Additionally, he tells the players to hone in on their weaknesses so that if they get another opportunity in Kansas City or elsewhere, they can make the required improvements to one day make the team.

The lack of a traditional preseason makes things a bit tougher on the players than in the past. They don’t have preseason tape from which opponents can evaluate their play. It’s one of the big reasons why Reid remains a proponent of playing preseason games in the future.

“I also normally tell them that everybody is going to have an opportunity to play in the [preseason] games, but they haven’t had that,” Reid said. “One reason the coaches like having the preseason games is so that young guys can show. If you can’t keep them on your team at least they have a chance to go make a living doing this thing with another team and like you said, keep their dream alive.”

Some of the players released will certainly land on the 16-man practice squad in Kansas City. For those who don’t, hopefully, Reid’s advice helps them in the next step in their path to keep their dream alive.

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Chiefs Wire Podcast: Ringing in the 2020 season

Mitch Carney, Talon Graff, and Ed Easton Jr. list their all-time favorite Chiefs moments in the weekly roundtable.

We’re back with an all-new episode of the Chiefs Wire podcast! This week we’re listing our all-time favorite Chiefs moments and talking championship rings.

During this show, Chiefs Wire managing editor Charles Goldman discusses Andy Reid and Brett Veach contract extensions, injury concerns and potential additions heading into Week 1. Mitch Carney, Talon Graff, and Ed Easton Jr. list their all-time favorite Chiefs moments in the weekly roundtable. Lastly, We hear from Chiefs head coach Andy Reid shares his thoughts on staying in Kansas City longterm and his first championship ring during his training camp press conference earlier in the week.