I had a few distractions this past winter…
Moving back to Tucson, buying and outfitting a new house, embarking on a new marriage, then getting a bad case of COVID and hosting a house fire – to name just a few.
So the fact that the Kansas City Chiefs totally sucked in the Super Bowl wasn’t as earth shattering as it might otherwise have been.
That said, I still thought all through the game – including beforehand – that the car crash of Chiefs coach Andy Reid‘s son was bound to have a chilling effect on Reid and the team.
I had just spoken at length with former WHB sports talk superstar Kevin Kietzman.
Kietzman, you may recall, was dethroned, yanked off the air for stepping on Superman’s cape.
“KC Radio Host Kevin Kietzman Pulled Off Air After Andy Reid Comments,” read a headline on Bleacher Report.
“Andy Reid does not have a great record of fixing players,” Kietzman had told listeners. “He doesn’t. Discipline is not his thing. It did not work out particularly well in his family life, and that needs to be added to this, as we’re talking about the Chiefs. He wasn’t real great at that either. He’s had a lot of things go bad on him, family and players.”
Two of Reids sons were extremely troubled.
His oldest son Garrett died of a heroin overdose in 2012.
And in 2007 his son Britt Reid – along with Garrett – was sentenced to slam time for running a “drug emporium” from Reid’s home and “involved” in a road rage incident where pointed a gun in another man’s face (move over Alec Baldwin).
But it was Britt Reid’s multi car crash last February after drinking that tragically injured a 5 year-old girl that spent 10 days in a coma and is reportedly still unable to walk or talk.
Andy Reid had hired his son as an assistant coach in order to keep him out of jail and Britt missed the Chiefs subsequent infamous Super Bowl meltdown.
Fast forward to last week when former Kansas City Star columnist Jason Whitlock claimed on his podcast “Fearless” that the Chiefs ongoing woes may have stemmed from Reid’s family distractions.
Ah, but even as Whitlock has already suffered several career hits on ESPN and Fox, he wasn’t about to take another major hit like Kietzman.
So he very carefully waded into the topic, taking a sympathetic approach to Andy Reid.
“About Andy Reid and my Kansas City Chiefs,” Whitlock begins. “They’re the biggest mystery in the NFL. And I’m not sure that they’re really a mystery at all…They just got smoked this past weekend, looked horrendous. So now there’s an entire discussion about, what’s the matter with the Kansas City Chiefs.”
Whitlock’s bottom line: “I’m not sure that it’s some great mystery like everyone’s pretending,” he said.
“Team’s after a Super Bowl tend to do poorly, that has been the tradition, but there’s an even bigger issue.”
That being the fate of Britt Reid and the 5 year-old girl.
“A lot of time if you want to understand what’s going on in the world, you have to evaluate what the media refuses to talk about or tries to downplay and diminish,” Whitlock said.
“I’m an Andy Reid fan..” he continued. “I’m a huge Andy Reid fan (and) longtime Kansas City Chiefs fan…Nothing I’m about to say is intended to malign Andy Reid.”
Talk about tap dancing…
“So last year when the Chiefs were about to play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Super Bowl…something happened two or tree days before the Super Bowl…and the Chiefs laid an egg in the Super Bowl.”
The headline that popped up on Whitlock’s podcast: “Chiefs fall to 3-4. Reid Distracted By Son’s DWI Charge?”
“Prison is hanging over Andy Reid’s son Britt for his involvement in this accident,”Whitlock said.
“And watching that Super Bowl, one of the things that struck me the most was like – the Chiefs have this high powered offense, they have the greatest offensive coach of his era – and the broadcasters or no one’s talking about, ‘Well, I wonder if Andy Reid is distracted. I wonder if his son and that car accident – what happened to the young girl and that girl’s family – I wonder if that’s hovering over and hasn’t distracted Andy Reid and perhaps taken him off his game and perhaps taken the Chiefs off their game.”
Despite Whitlock’s attempt to minimize the potential backlash from Chiefs fans (that took down Kevin Kietzman) by kissing up to Reid, a check of his past work reveals he wasn’t always a big Andy Reid fan,
In 2013, for example, when Reid was first signed by the Chiefs, Philly Magazine wrote a story undertone headline, “Andy Reid to KC as Fox’s Jason Whitlock Goes Berserk.”
“Sports columnist Jason Whitlock is apoplectic that Reid is being taken seriously by NFL teams,” it reads “‘We’re all pretending Reid is Don Shula coming off the ’72 season, but there’s plenty of proof Reid went crazy in Philly. The Eagles spent millions of dollars building a dream team, and Reid turned his defense over to an offensive-line coach on a whim. This is like getting a date with Beyonce and consulting with Ike Turner on how to romance her.””
So much for Reid being the “greatest offensive coach of his era.”
The ’21 swiss chefs are following a similar path the 1967 Chiefs did… from Superbowl losers to disappointments next season same. The latter didn’t even reach post-season the one followed Superbowl, and the former is well on their way emulating said (that matter, Stram’s Chiefs ‘offense of the 70’s’ lasted but a season so there’s some history KC as it were.)
Difference: SB I Kansas City lost to the then and still greatest team pro football history GB Packers – 5 Championships in 7 seasons and a 6th in 8 were but 10 yards and a few seconds shy… their 3 consecutive remains unmatched and unsurpassed. Far as the ’70 Chiefs, according Willie Lanier “we were not ready physically or mentally” season that followed their Superbowl triumph… aka, the fat cat syndrome.
Contrast, last season’s KC collection dismantled SB 55 was merely the latest victim of ‘parity’, a tribute not only ‘on any Sunday’, but on any given year ‘any team’ can reach/ win the Superbowl in this easiest era ever to win, reach post-season and pile up bogus, rule-enabled stats. Unlike their football forefathers KC, that present day players seem more consumed with gyrations and trash talk (last night’s NY Giants ‘taunting penalty’ proof positive), is not lost on the cast of clowns wearing the red and gold, nor is it new.
Bottom line: unlike GB’s dynasty, no team has won even two Championships in a row over the last 16 years, courtesy the more recent vintage ‘no team is left behind’ racket. NFL’s parity-experiment seems to be working – even losers win courtesy this $y$tem; that it comes at the cost the game’s integrity and sanctity record book, eh, so what.
~
Nod KC 2021, their horrible defense and overhyped schoolyard QB’s kryptonite found: Mahomes now has to ‘think’ and read a defense, not a strength his. While having learn do so will pay dividends down the road perhaps, this year, he and the offense has been effectively neutered, last night’s pathetic showing against an injury-riddled NY Giants team, affirming. Only thing which surprises me is NFL defensive coordinators did not solve the swiss chefs a few years earlier.
Far as the Head Coach Reid, I said it years ago on this website and elsewhere: the KC team had no discipline – still doesn’t. Talent comes and goes a team the passage years, but to not draw any correlation between how a coach deals (or does not) with an issue on the field, only magnified based how his players and own legacy a progeny conducts themselves off. To wit, has been enough bad news (and not just of late) in Kansas City, object lessons as examples both on and off the field.
If Reid is not distracted by his son’s situation that would mean there is something very wrong with him. I think it has definitely been a factor. I am not surprised that there is drinking at the Chiefs facility. Its a posh, clubhouse type of environment. But it is pretty obvious that Britt Reid got intoxicated at One Arrowhead. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a Super Bowl send off happy hour in the office. The Chiefs seem to be Teflon.
You clearly are correct, Rainbow…
And I definitely understand that thinking.
However, Reid chose to put the rest of society at risk by giving his sons phony jobs that they did not earn or deserve to keep them out of jail and now look what happened.
Most people are not in a position to harness nepotism to that degree and I’d not only be surprised, but greatly disappointed if he were not dramatically affected by the sad result of his poor decision making
When Chiefs do not perform up to expectations the Andy Reid bashers led by KK always come out. And some criticisms are valid – nepotism in entire NFL is a huge issue. For those that claim Reid is not a strong disciplinarian (KK probably believes if he just took a hard line w his sons and cracked the whip on them they would have been just fine) they never mention Travis Kelce. He was immature and often out of control on the field when he entered league. Under Reid he has become a guaranteed Hall of Famer.
In the cases of Reid’s sons, it goes we’ll beyond goof, old-fashioned nepotism…
By giving his sons jobs they did not earn or deserve, he unleashed them on an un suspecting public which tragically backfired
Right out of the KK talking points HC. It is classic nepotism -“the practice among those with power or influence of favoring relatives or friends, especially by giving them jobs.” To quote deceased, former NFL coach Jim Fassel “Football coaches are basically glorified PE teachers.” Do you really think if Andy’s sons were grade school janitors they would not have had issues, or been a danger to society?
It’s not a question of whether Reids sons were coaches or MacDonald’s burger makers…
And I don’t know fully what KK’s talking points beyond what I quoted were but the main point being is that Reid used his power and prestige to deny society the safety and the justice that was due his sons and that little girl and whomever else paid the price.
Andy Reid transformed the organization and the Chiefs are are a first class team. I also get a sense that Andy Reid is a good man. I truly sympathize with his personal family issues and none of us know what he is going through there. BUT… the Chiefs expect and demand no scrutiny and they get little scrutiny on matters that deserve it. They are a pretty arrogant organization and they are enabled by the media, local government and law enforcement. They are also enabled by a punch drunk fan base. Right or wrong, winning does cure all ills. So if we miss the playoffs this year and come out weak next season … They will be squirming with fan angst.
This comment is so good, so deserving, I’m gonna elevate it to a column theme!
PART I
Appetizer, connect the dots…
Return with us those thrilling days yesteryear, the year 1971:
NFL’s punt, pass and kick competition an 13 year old named Andy Reid, in mid December… KC Chiefs ‘offense of the 70’s crashes back Earth, Christmas day… and Sly’s ‘Family Stone’ (‘Its A) Family Affair’ reaches #1 the charts, these lyrics:
‘One child grows up to be
Somebody that just loves to learn
And another child grows up to be
Somebody you’d just love to burn’
PART II
To be or not to be disciplined…
Weighty issues (as reported over the years) his put in abeyance in lieu familial interest time, focus teams KC tenure his to date, consider any correlation discipline to success one year the next;
Nod Hank Stram’s ‘football is a game of now’ quip, most recent results last three seasons KC/also Reid’s most successful here –
2020 = unsurpassed NFL unsportsmanlike penalties, numbers of and yards cost (season ends in a loss = no title)
2019 = 0 of these type penalties (season ends a Superbowl win, most successful asterisk* era year KC, ’69* same)
2018 = unsurpassed NFL unsportsmanlike penalties (a season ends with a loss, and no titles won 49 years and counting then)
You decide…
PART III
Limited space precludes listing the players Reid’s tenure stood out (like a sore thumb) their unsportsmanlike penalties as well disqualifications. Likewise will not address specifics as players names reported or found culpable off-field issue (uninterested embarrassing them they’ve embarrassed name ‘Chiefs’, as well themselves their actions.)
Suffice to say, certain positions and pigment WR, DB, RB, LB, and DL (outlier an TE has continued his juvenile antics career early to date, enough make you grab crotch, throw towel, hurl an expletive and simulate something perverse.)
Alas, dropped passes, fumbles and a pouty demeanor response failures his largely replaced earlier cringe-worthy reposes (that he does still enjoy indicating first down the rare times he plays an part said, reminds yore if does not redeem him/said.
Bottom line: W/L as eye test to date tells the tale afield, still a story on/off waiting to be told. As stands, measured by a .500 team/Head Coach 2021 earning its grasp last place AFC West.