Five years ago, this would have been unthinkable to consider, but it’s a real debate now. Who has had the better coaching career: Andy Reid or Bill Belichick?
It’s close, but Reid is starting to pull ahead.
The only thing still in the former Patriots coach’s favor is his championship total. He’s got six to Reid’s three. That’s not insignificant. Super Bowl titles are the ultimate currency for NFL coaches. Some people won’t move beyond that point in the discussion.
But if Reid wins his fourth championship on Feb. 9 — and it sure feels like he’s going to — it’s worth looking at the other evidence. And those boost the argument in Reid’s favor.
All of Belichick’s notable success came with Tom Brady. All of it. Four of his five seasons with the Browns were under .500. Four of his six seasons without Brady in New England were under .500. Still, it’s massively oversimplifying things to say that Belichick was just along for the ride as Brady guided New England to six championships.
That’s grossly inaccurate. Belichick put together some amazing game plans and created some historically good rosters around Brady. He deserves a lot of credit. But he did stumble into the greatest quarterback of all time.
But outside of Brady, he mismanaged the quarterback position. And in a discussion about the greatest coaches of all time, bungling quarterbacks is a pretty big dent in his armor.
It’s not just Mac Jones either although Belichick handled him catastrophically bad. If Belichick really was ready to move on from Brady for Jimmy Garoppolo in 2017, Robert Kraft saved him from what would have been a legacy-shattering move. Brady had plenty of success still ahead of him and Garoppolo never moved beyond being just a solid NFL quarterback.
If not for Brady, Reid might have two more championships already. If he did then this wouldn’t even be a discussion. Brady beat Reid twice in the Super Bowl — once in Philadelphia with the Patriots and once in Kansas City with Tampa Bay.
Reid created powerhouse teams with Philadelphia and Kansas City. He won a conference championship and reached the playoffs nine times with Donovan McNabb before Patrick Mahomes was even in middle school.
Reid had five winning seasons and four playoff appearances with Alex Smith with the Chiefs too.
Reid landed his generational quarterback later in his career than Belichick did. Reid deserves credit too for recognizing Mahomes’ future greatness. He traded up to get him, a move that the Bills, who traded down, have to be regretting. And Reid might be about to win his third straight championship, something Belichick never did.
The only thing that makes it even a question of whether Reid will pass Belichick or Don Shula is age.
Helped by Belichick’s post-Brady slide, Reid’s career-winning percentage is better than Belichick’s .652-.647. He’s only 28 victories behind Belichick among the combined career wins leaders. At 66, if Reid keeps coaching, he’s three good seasons or two great seasons away from passing Belichick on that list too.
Barring an injury to Mahomes, Reid’s window to win more championships is wide open. No matter what happens in New Orleans the Chiefs will enter next year as the betting favorites in the AFC and probably the NFL.
And for now, Belichick can only watch it happen. While he’s coaching his Tar Heels against Cal and Wake Forest on Saturday, Reid could be going for four in a row and stealing Belichick’s legacy out from under him.
Follow MassLive sports columnist Matt Vautour on Twitter at @MattVautour424.
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