The Magic Of Andy Reid

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When Andy Reid became the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles in 1999, he took a lump of clay and molded it. Reid inherited an Eagles team that went 3-13 in his previous year, and by 2000, he had them in the playoffs as a wild card. The next four years would see the Eagles make the NFC Championship Game with them appearing in Super Bowl 39 to conclude the 2004 National Football League season. The Eagles would continue to be a perennial playoff team under Reid, but after consecutive years without a postseason appearance in 2011 and 2012, he was fired. And in 14 seasons as the Eagles head coach, Reid’s record was 130-93-1, while he was 10-9 in the playoffs.

It didn’t take Reid that long to land on his feet as less than a week after his firing in Philadelphia, he was named as the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs. And in Kansas City, the same magic that Reid had displayed in Philadelphia was put on display rather quickly.

Andy Reid

Reid took over a Chiefs team that only won two games in the previous year. But in Reid’s first year in Kansas City, the Chiefs went 11-5 en route to the postseason. Under Reid the Chiefs have never had a losing season and this past January saw them win their first postseason game since January 1994. And what made 2015 so unique for the Chiefs is that they became the first team in National Football League history to reach the playoffs after beginning the season with a record of 1-5 as they would win their final 10 games.

Here in the 2016 National Football League season, the Chiefs haven’t skipped a beat as their 12-4 record saw them win the AFC West for the first time since 2010, while securing a first-round bye for the first time since 2003. The Chiefs also swept the AFC West this season for the first time since 1995 as Reid has the folks in the Heartland thinking about the Super Bowl for the first time in a long time.

Reid’s first order of business upon taking over the Chiefs was to find himself a quarterback. Reid’s search took himself to Northern California as he acquired quarterback Alex Smith from the San Francisco 49ers which would cost the Chiefs a pair of draft picks, but it was well worth it.

Alex Smith

Smith was the first overall pick of the 2005 National Football League Draft by the 49ers and the majority of his time in San Francisco was plagued by injuries and playing on poor teams. Smith’s best season in San Francisco came in 2011 when he was under the tutelage of Jim Harbaugh who had just taken over as the head coach of the Niners. Smith would pass for 3,144 yards which was a career-high as he helped the 49ers reach the NFC Championship Game. But in 2012, an injury to Smith opened to the door for Colin Kaepernick to become the Niners starting quarterback. And as Kaepernick was able to help the 49ers reach the Super Bowl that season, Smith became expendable in San Francisco.

However Smith was able to land on his feet with the Chiefs as like Harbaugh, Reid has a reputation as far as being a quarterback guru.

Smith is not known for having a strong arm, and Reid has not asked him to win games passing, but more with efficiency, along with smarts. Smith’s record as the Chiefs starting quarterback is 41-20 while he has completed nearly 65% of his passes. Smith is typically been near the bottom of interceptions as during his four seasons in Kansas City as he has only thrown 25 picks. Smith is a mobile quarterback and Reid uses that to benefit the Chiefs offense as Smith has been known to take off pick up yardage with his legs if a play breaks down which takes him back to his collegiate days when he operated in the spread offense for the Utah Utes.

The Chiefs have dealt with injuries this season; especially at the running back position, but they have depth there. Knee injuries have gotten the best of running back Jamaal Charles, but Reid has been able to lean on Spencer Ware and Charcandrick West coming out of the backfield. Ware led the Chiefs in rushing this season with 921 yards, but the fact that neither he or Ware have carried the football 250 times this season should help Kansas City’s chances in the playoffs as both running backs should be fresh.

Injuries this season limited wide receiver Jeremy Maclin to just 12 games this season, but the Chiefs passing game didn’t skip a beat as Travis Kelce has emerged as one of the best receiving tight ends in the National Football League. This season Kelce had 85 receptions for 1,125 yards and his ability to keep safeties honest will be big in the postseason if the Chiefs expect to advance.

The Chiefs defense was 24th in the National Football League this season as they allowed 368.5 yards per game, but their 19.4 points per game average was seventh in the league as they had a bend but don’t break philosophy. The Chiefs have a pair of Pro Bowlers in their secondary in the form of free safety Eric Berry and cornerback Marcus Peters. Berry possesses some of the best range in the NFL at his position, while in just two years in the league, Peters has already accumulated 14 interceptions as quarterbacks must think twice before they throw to his side.

The Chiefs ability to run and the football, while having a quarterback in Smith that doesn’t force the football into coverage, along with a defense that creates turnovers is why they were plus-16 in the turnover margin this season which led the National Football League and that will be a factor for them in the playoffs.

Jeremy Maclin

The bye week came at the right time for the Chiefs as it has given them the chance to get players such as outside linebacker Tambi Hali and Maclin healthy for the playoffs. The Chiefs unconventional way of wreaking havoc on both sides of the football is a big reason why some football pundits believe that they have a shot to get a road victory against the New England Patriots this month in order to advance to the Super Bowl.

But the Chiefs still have a huge hurdle to clear as they have never won a playoff game after they had a first-round bye. However this week is the best time to break that hex as they are set to host the Pittsburgh Steelers whom they lost to earlier this season. And if Reid can get the Chiefs to the Super Bowl, he will join an elite list of head coaches to lead two teams to the National Football League’s Championship Game, while joining Hank Stram as the only men to take Kansas City there. The move to hire Reid by Chiefs owner Clark Hunt a few years ago is looking better by the day as he has found a coach who has turned his franchise into a contender.

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By | 2017-01-08T16:30:45+00:00 January 9th, 2017|Categories: National Football League|Tags: , , |0 Comments

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