Rumors and speculation about the future of Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid have swirled for years, with the now-65-year-old head coach often being at the center of the NFL world with four Super Bowl appearances in the last five seasons.
However, Reid himself has never stoked those flames, consistently telling reporters that he hadn’t given retirement much thought, and that he still enjoys coaching. Now, Reid has provided a little more insight into where his mindset about retirement originated.
In an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, Reid explained his philosophy on retirement with a story from his parents and discussed why he wasn’t considering stepping away.
Eisen asked Reid if there was ever any thought in Reid’s mind about retiring after the 2023-24 season.
“No, not really,” Reid began. “I joked to people about it, but it’s the truth… My parents retired, so I remember asking my mom and dad, ‘What made you retire now?’ And they just said, ‘You’re gonna know when that time is, you’ll just know.’ Now, I’m 17 years old and they’re telling me this, or 18 years old, whatever I was there, and so I was big enough to understand that they were stepping out of something that they loved to do. So, I was just curious, and that’s what they told me. So, I mentioned, when I was asked it the 60th time, that I’ll know the time, today’s not the day, so that was my answer to it. And you know how the questions are at the Super Bowl, you do that media night, and Bill [Belichick]’s not coaching anymore and Pete [Carroll]’s not coaching anymore, so I’m the next-oldest guy, so I’m getting asked that question every five minutes, and that’s not where I’m at right now. I don’t feel that way, that I need to retire right now.”
Eisen suggested that Patrick Mahomes helps keep Reid feeling young, and Reid agreed while sharing the credit with the rest of his Chiefs squad.
“You know how this goes, one thing that happens is, we have these mirrors, and you look in the mirror and you’re getting older and the guys all stay the same because of the changeover, all between that 22 or 21 and 30-year-old age normally,” Reid said. “They just shuffle in and out as they go, and you’re growing older. But I don’t feel as bad as I look there, Rich.”
