How good of a coach is Andy Reid?

This Saturday marks the fourth anniversary of the Philadelphia Eagles firing Andy Reid after spending 14 seasons as the Eagles head coach. Since then the Eagles are on their second head coach, while Reid has a 42-21 record as the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs in almost four seasons.

In Reid’s last seven seasons with the eagles, they were .500 or better in all but one season, the season he was fired. It is safe to say, the Eagles let a great coach walk out the door.

The Chiefs made a great decision in hiring Reid as their head coach. This season will be the third time Reid has led them to the playoffs.

When Reid came to the Chiefs in 2013, he inherited a very solid team that had good depth, but did not have a starting quarterback. The quarterback position was soon fixed by acquiring Alex Smith, who had some successful seasons for the San Francisco 49ers.

However, Smith (career 197 yards per game) has been known more as a game-manager and the only offensive weapon on the Chiefs was Jamaal Charles. Even then, Charles has only played eight games in the past two seasons.

Without any key offensive weapons, Reid had to be creative to keep his offense relevant and his team in the playoff hunt. 2017 has been Reid’s most creative season yet. With Charles being out most of the season, another running back had to stepped up and Reid found Spencer Ware (97 yards from scrimmage per game) had a great season filling in.

Another weapon that Reid has utilized has been rookie wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who was drafted in the fifth round of the 2016 draft. Hill has 11 touchdowns on the season, scored four different ways, receiving, rushing, punt return, and kick return. He has averaged over one rush attempt per game and in the Chiefs Week 16 win against the Denver Broncos, Hill had six rush attempts for 95 yards.

Getting the ball to Hill is one way Reid has gotten creative with his offense. At the goal line, the Chiefs gave the ball to offensive lineman Dontari Poe perform a jump throw for a touchdown, very Tim Tebow-esque.

Lastly, Reid knows that his best receiver is his tight end Travis Kelce (75 receiving yards per game). Again in Week 16 Reid made the offense revolve around Kelce as he had 11 reception for 160 yards and a touchdown. Without any big offensive stars, the the Chiefs were still able to put up 33 points against the Broncos defence, one of the best in the league.

The creativity that Reid has shown this season is the way the Chiefs will have to win in the playoffs. In Kansas City, Reid might not have the same offensive talent that he had in Philadelphia, but he does not need it. The Chiefs are about to make the playoffs for the third time in four years behind the creativity and masterful coaching from Reid. It is safe to say when Reid left Philadelphia, the Eagles lost their best opportunity to win their first Super Bowl.