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We think about the greatest coach-quarterback duos in NFL history, and we think about championships.Paul Brown and Otto Graham won seven — four in the AAFL and three in the NFL — with the Cleveland Browns. Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are the modern standard with six Super Bowl wins for the New England Patriots. By bringing five championships to the Green Bay Packers
Vince Lombardi and Bart Starr renamed the city “Titletown.” Chuck Noll and Terry Bradshaw, with a little help from the other side of the ball, claimed four Super Bowls for the Pittsburgh Steelers. George Halas and Sid Luckman won four Chicago Bears championships and might have won more if not for World War II. The Bill Walsh-Joe Montana connection with the San Francisco 49ers produced three.
We should think about more than championships, though. We should think about symbiosis.We should think about Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes.The duo could win a third championship Sunday by leading the Kansas City Chiefs past the 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII. And their partnership is as special as any.
The coach has the mustache of a walrus; the QB gets his hair cut in a mohawk reminiscent of an exotic bird. A sneaker collection lines Mahomes’ closet, whereas Reid has wall-to-wall Hawaiian shirts. Mahomes can rage; Reid is placid like Lake Tahoe.Yet seven years into their union, they have complemented each other as well as a coach and quarterback can
Mahomes is a devotee of ketchup. Reid professes his love of cheeseburgers. Of course they go together well.In their beginnings, Reid was taken aback by how much Mahomes wanted to be taught. It was uncommon. And Reid was the ideal teacher to help him achieve his goals.
They have genuine respect for one another,” says Bob LaMonte, Reid’s longtime agent. “(Mahomes) looks to Andy like a guru.”Reid calls Mahomes at random times to discuss plays, including at 4 a.m. And Mahomes doesn’t mind. The two meet privately in Reid’s office every Friday before a game. It’s Mahomes’ favorite time of the week.
Mahomes speaks as if speed reading aloud. Reid talks like he walks: slowly and usually without going far. But they both process their chalkboard like Max Born and Robert Oppenheimer processed theirs. Reid has said he feels challenged by Mahomes because his aptitude for the game is “ridiculous.” The same adjective would apply to Reid’s.