Can Andy Reid pass Bill Belichick in the GOAT debate? This is a real possibility.
Should Andy Reid be considered the greatest coach of all time? Not yet. But it would be wrong to say that the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs isn’t at least part of the conversation.
The idea that Reid could eventually surpass the greats, including Don Shula and Bill Belichick, is no longer just an afterthought. It’s a legitimate possibility. Reed, who has 283 wins in the regular season and postseason, needs 65 wins to pass Shula. It may seem like a lot, but it is doable. It flew under the radar primarily because of Belichick’s current greatness.But Belichick, with Shula’s 15 wins, has never been a head coach in the NFL. The longtime Patriots coach parted ways with New England after a 4-13 season in 2023 and failed to fill one of seven coaching vacancies this offseason.
We don’t think Belichick’s coaching career is over yet. But it’s clear that with the season suspended, there’s less time to win. Belichick could be hired by a talented team after the 2024 campaign and could surpass Shula in two years. However, this is no longer considered the final result.And Reid faced one of the biggest situations in all of professional sports. Reed had 13 wins per season (11.6 regular season wins) in his 11 years with the Chiefs. If this continues, Reed, 65, will need five years to reach Shula’s 348 years. Even if Reed’s season average dipped to 10, he would reach the mark in less than seven seasons. Mahomes is under contract through 2031 and likely won’t be leaving Kansas City, so a double-digit win season wouldn’t be out of the question, even if the roster looks different over the next few years. Reid and Mahomes have proven they can develop and win in different ways.
It comes down to one thing: How long does Reed want to coach? There have been rumors of Reed’s retirement in recent seasons and again this winter. Reid and Chiefs owner Clark Hunt poured cold water on the idea before Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. “I don’t expect him to retire,” Hunt told Chris Russo of Mad Dog Sports Radio, as recorded by Pro Football Talk . “He loves what he does. I know he gets his energy from the team he has. I know he loves coaching Patrick Mahomes. There are guardians for every generation. I look forward to having Andy as my head coach for many years to come.”One sentence summarizes Reed’s feelings on the subject. “Today is not the day.”If Reid averages 13 wins per season and surpasses Shula in five campaigns, he will still be younger than Belichick, who is 71, as Arrowhead Addict points out. That’s why it’s important to separate Reed’s desire to coach from his age. His age doesn’t matter. Pete Carroll just completed his 72-year-old season.
Of course, all-time wins are only part of the GOAT story. The fact that Belichick has won six Super Bowls as a head coach is why some consider him the GOAT instead of beating the leader Shula. Shula, like Reed, holds two titles. Reed is likely to stay somewhere in the middle. Would four Lombardi trophies be enough for Reid’s resume if he holds the all-time wins record? may be.Who knows, four of those could be small in Kansas City. With Mahomes behind center, the Chiefs will compete for the next decade. That doesn’t mean he wins everything, but fighting is the first step. Mahomes won four Super Bowls in his first six seasons.”I don’t think about it too much,” Reed said when asked about his legacy and winning record, according to the Pro Football Network. “In this industry, you’re in the moment and what happens when something like this happens? You don’t really think about it.”I think it’s time for football fans to think about it.
