ANDY REID will be very familiar to certain senior personnel within the Philadelphia Eagles organization.
Reid, 66, has the chance to do what no coach has EVER managed to accomplish before – win three consecutive Super Bowls.
He is already among the greatest coaches ever and an unprecedented win will only cement his legacy further.
Reid is the only man to win 100 games with two different franchises and the only coach to appear in four consecutive conference championships with two different franchises.
But just over a decade ago, his reputation was seen as far different to what it is now.
Despite being the winningest coach in Eagles history, Reid was seen as a ‘choke artist’.
Philadelphia reached the NFC Championship game four times in a row from 2001 to 2004 but reached the Super Bowl just once – where they also lost to the New England Patriots.
A Bleacher Report article from 2010, that can still be read, lists him as the fourth biggest choke artist of the last 25 years.
He lasted 14 years with the Eagles, winning 140 total games and missing the playoffs just five times, but by his final seasons screams of ‘Fire Andy’ rang out during home games.
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie listened to the fans and axed him after a 4-12 season in 2012.
It was one of the most amicable partings ever, with Reid offered a game ball by Lurie and receiving a standing ovation from employees as he left the team facility on New Year’s Eve.
At the time, he said: “I have a hard time standing before people without a few boos involved. But I’m taking it, I’m taking it all in.
“These have been the greatest 14 years of my life.”
He added: “Sometimes change is good. I know the next guy that comes in will be phenomenal. The ultimate goal is a Super Bowl.
“Everybody in this room, I wish you a big ring on the finger in the near future.
“Hail to the Eagles, baby.”
The Kansas City Chiefs did not waste time getting their man.
According to the Associated Press, Chiefs owner Clark Hunt and several team executives intercepted Reid at a Philadelphia airport.
Reid was on his way to Arizona to interview for the Cardinals head coaching job – but after a nine-hour conversation, he never made the trip.
Reid had an immediate impact on the Chiefs.
After winning only nine games combined in their previous two seasons, Reid won 11 in his first season and transformed quarterback Alex Smith.
The former No 1 draft pick, brought in as a free agent, had only had one winning season with the San Francisco 49ers and was considered one of the biggest busts ever.
In five seasons with Reid as his head coach, the pair missed the playoffs just once and won 53 regular season games.
Smith was named to the Pro Bowl three times and it was also during this period that Travis Kelce emerged as one of the best tight ends around.
But despite the regular season success, Reid still couldn’t shake that choke artist tag.
Reid and Smith won just one of five playoff games, progressing no further than the Divisional Round.
The Eagles also won their first Super Bowl in franchise history in 2017 to rub further salt into Reid’s wounds.
But everything changed when Reid decided Patrick Mahomes was ready to be the starter.
Travis Kelce has become one of the greatest tight ends to ever play the gameGetty Images - GettyThe Texas Tech grad had good stats in college but not many wins – he left with a record of 13-16 – although an impressive pre-draft process saw him rise up boards.
He was still only considered the second or third best QB in the 2017 draft, with Mitch Trubisky taken No 2 overall by the Chicago Bears.
Still available at No 10, the Chiefs traded up from 27 with the Buffalo Bills to take him.
He didn’t start in his first year and played just one game – throwing no touchdowns and an interception – but then dramatically changed the entire landscape of the NFL in his first year as a starter.
Mahomes became only the third player – after Peyton Manning and Tom Brady – to throw 50 touchdown passes and he was named the league MVP.
Hunt told the AP: “You think back to 2013, when Andy joined the organization, made us an immediate winner and really changed the culture here, and then a few years later, he got the quarterback that he had been waiting his whole career for.”
Success wasn’t immediate, with the Chiefs taking a tough loss in the AFC Championship game to the New England Patriots, with Brady going on to win his sixth ring.
The choke artist tag again remained, before Reid finally shook it off by beating the 49ers to win Super Bowl LIV.
The Chiefs have not let up, winning rings in each of the last two seasons and now having the chance to become the first team ever to three-peat.
Mahomes has become the face of the sport, winning another MVP, with the pair having an incredible record of 105-26 since he became the full-time starter.
ReutersPatrick Mahomes has become the face of the NFL and – alongside Reid – the Chiefs have won 80% of their games and already have three rings[/caption]They now have three rings and Reid now has the chance to win a three-peat against his former franchise – the same team where this run of Super Bowl wins started.
Hunt added: “I think there was a comment earlier about why it’s so hard, why nobody has ever gone back to have a chance at a three-peat.
“I think it’s because those teams didn’t have the combination of Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes.”
As for Eagles fans? They now say Reid can’t win anything without Mahomes.
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