With Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid set on coming back for 2026, he can make NFL history in the coming years with a quick bounce back from a dismal 2025.
Reid, 67, confirmed on Monday that “if they’ll have me back, I’ll come back” despite the 6-10 record this season. If Reid can get things back on track in 2026, he could easily be well on the way to third place for the all-time NFL coaching wins leaders.
Reid, who has 307 career wins overall, can pass former Chicago Bears coaching great George Halas, who has 324 career wins. Based on the Chiefs’ recent run before 2025, Reid could easily pass Halas in two seasons with the 18 needed wins.
If Reid finishes his $100 million contract extension through 2029, he could also easily pass former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, 333 wins, for second on the all-time list. Reid would only need 27 wins to pass Belichick in that span.
Former and late Miami Dolphins head coaching legend Don Shula’s record of 347 wins looks more daunting, but achievable in the next four years for Reid. During the past four seasons, the Chiefs have averaged 16 wins between the regular season and playoffs.
Whether or not Reid will coach long enough and the Chiefs return to and sustain the same previous success for that long are the unknowns.
Andy Reid: ‘You Never Know in this Business’
Reid doesn’t need to look far to know that catching Shula is far from guaranteed.
“You never know in this business; that’s a tough one,” Reid told reporters regarding his future from ownership’s standpoint.
If Chiefs owner Clark Hunt decides to go a different direction for 2026, Reid may have to choose between retirement or taking on an NFL coaching job that likely won’t reap the same level of success as the Chiefs. That could make it more unlikely for Reid to catch Belichick, let alone Shula.
Belichick, 73, once looked poised to catch Shula, but the Patriots faltered between 2020 and 2023 after former quarterback Tom Brady departed for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Patriots and Belichick then parted ways after back-to-back losing seasons, and Belichick resurfaced on the college sidelines with North Carolina.
Belichick didn’t make a strong case for returning to the NFL after his Tar Heels stumbled to 4-8 this year. Reid likely wouldn’t find dead ends in continuing coaching in the NFL if the Chiefs don’t keep him, but the risk of landing on a losing team’s sideline in 2026 goes up if he can’t continue in Kansas City.
Andy Reid Will Have Tall Tasks Ahead in 2026
If Reid gets to stay, he will have a tall order ahead to get the Chiefs back to title contention in 2026.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL less than a month ago, which means he could miss significant time in 2026. Tight end Travis Kelce could retire, and the Chiefs could lose other key offensive players in free agency such as wide receiver Hollywood Brown or running back Kareem Hunt.
Kansas City has a dismal salary cap situation for 2026, too, with $39.68 million above the cap.
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