The confetti had hardly finished falling on the Kansas City Chiefs’ second consecutive Super Bowl title when safety Justin Reid started looking ahead.
When the Chiefs won after the 2022 season, Reid said the experience before and after his first Super Bowl was so surreal that it took a few days for everything to sink in. After Kansas City’s 25-22 win in overtime against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII three months ago in Las Vegas, however, he was already looking forward to doing it again.
“Once we won again, the feeling set in a little bit quicker that we did this again and we’re not slowing down,” Reid told The Japan Times during a recent visit to Japan, where he spent time making a few appearances, coached young players in Kyoto on the fundamentals of the game and explored museums, among other activities. “We’re going to keep going.”
For Reid, the ever-present question of whether or not the Chiefs are a dynasty was put to rest when quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw the game-winning touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman in overtime to secure the team’s third title in five seasons.
“Absolutely a dynasty,” Reid said. “Everybody is chasing the Chiefs. That’s exactly the way that we want it.”
Now the question is: can Kansas City make history? The Chiefs will enter the 2024-25 season as the ninth team with a chance to three-peat as Super Bowl champion. None among the previous eight even made it back to the big game.
The key to becoming the first, Reid says, is for the Chiefs to remain humble and hungry amid a run of success that has seen the team reach four of the last five Super Bowls.
“I think it’s critical that our leaders, players and coaches emphasize that, ‘hey, you know what, it’s great what we’ve already done, but that means nothing for this year,’” Reid said. “You don’t win any games on Sunday just because you won last year.
“I think that we have those guys in this room, which is why I think the culture (in Kansas City) is so special. Why we continue to be dominant is that we’re not going to rest on our laurels. We’re not going to take a break or relax or think that anything will be given to us. We’re willing to work and we’re willing to fight tooth and nail for every W that we’re going to get.”
Mahomes is the biggest factor. The star quarterback is a two-time league MVP and is the type of player who can keep defenses up at night.
“If you spend a guy spying on him, then either you take away a rusher to where now there’s not a pressure element to make him get off the spot, or you take away a guy in coverage — and Pat can already thread the needle,” Reid said. “So you’re just allowing him bigger windows to throw the ball.
“If you want to add the rush and coverage … he’s faster than people think and he’ll run around there and make a play when he needs to with his legs.
“(He’s) just the ultimate competitor. He helps a lot of us out too. Because when you have a guy like that, you always have a chance, and part of the difference between a good team and the bad teams in the NFL — because the line of talent isn’t that big of a difference — it’s just the belief in yourself and belief in your team that you can win. And we always feel like we can win.”
Reid has established himself as a defensive leader since arriving in Kansas City as a free agent before the 2022-23 season.
He played in 16 games last year and led the Chiefs with 95 tackles (74 solo) and recorded an interception, a forced fumble and three sacks. He had nine tackles (four solo) against the Niners in the Super Bowl.
Reid, a native of Prairieville, Louisiana, has also ingrained himself in the Kansas City community.
In addition to other charitable works, Reid, who studied industrial engineering at Stanford, started a computer science boot camp for kids to introduce them to computer programming, something he became passionate about in college after what he called “forced exposure.”
“Regardless of what you study as an undergrad at Stanford, you have to take two coding classes,” Reid said. “It’s an undergraduate requirement, and upon being somewhat forced into taking it to fulfill my undergrad requirements, I found out, ‘Hey, you know what? I actually really like this.’”
Reid said the motivation behind the program is to provide exposure.
“Going from where I grew up, in a relatively small town, to Silicon Valley at Stanford was a culture shock,” he said. “It’s like I was in a new world, and it challenged me in a way that helped my growth tremendously. And I recognized a couple of things from those experiences.
“One, is the difference between the kids I grew up with and the kids that were at Stanford really wasn’t that much. One of the biggest things that I could attribute (that to) was just access and exposure to resources, having a vision, having a plan and believing in yourself that you can do it because you have access to it.
“And I also recognize that when I was exposed to it, I found out that I was really good at it, and I know I wouldn’t have found that out if I wasn’t exposed to it. So just trying to give that same opportunity to the next generation.”
Reid likes to be hands-on at the camp, knowing that many campers know him better as a star athlete.
“A lot of times I say the same things their instructors and parents are already saying,” he said. “But when it comes from a different person’s mouth, sometimes it’s received differently. Part of what helped me be successful in this environment today, I know I played football, but just successful in life, is I have these skills and I’m passionate about it. When a kid sees someone that looks like them or is someplace that they want to be, and you tell them these things can help you, a lot of times it’s received differently, and kids usually take to it a little bit stronger.”
Reid, while understanding the NFL is a business, is hopeful he can remain in Kansas City for the long haul and continue helping on and off the field.
“I love Kansas City,” he said. “I’m so happy. I mean, I loved my time in Houston (where he started his career), but one of my favorite parts about Kansas City is just the consistency that I’ve had here. There hasn’t been a lot of turnover. There hasn’t been a lot of change, which has really allowed me to shine and understand the playbook better and help be a leader to the guys. Because when things are always changing year after year, it’s just a little bit harder, because you’re always working on new things. You don’t get to take anything that you learned last year and take it into this year.
“So that comfort level and, and the way that the culture is and the way the support of the fans are in Kansas City, it’s just so unbelievable. And I’m so happy to be a part of it.”
The Chiefs will begin the quest for a three-peat when training camp starts in July, with Reid looking to have a big season as Kansas City tries to make NFL history.
“The first goal is always a team goal, which is to win a Super Bowl,” he said. “But personally, it’s just to keep being consistent, keep tackling well, keep making plays on the ball, hopefully get some end-of-season honors, whether that’s an All-Pro nod or a Pro Bowl nod. But again, that just comes from doing the things right during the week and playing well to help your team win.”
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