Andy Reid Delivers Message Of Unity Amid Team's And Country's Problems

Andy Reid's got problems because his Kansas City Chiefs are merely treading water with a .500 record, the playoffs are no certainty and, yes, the Cowboys just beat them on Thanksgiving Day.

But amid those problems, and an inability to avoid penalties that are out of control, Reid opened his postgame press conference Thursday evening with a more philosophical tone than anyone expected.

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - NOVEMBER 23: Head coach Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs gestures in the fourth quarter of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Arrowhead Stadium on November 23, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Reid Message: Everybody Gets Along

"So, Thanksgiving – it is Thanksgiving, so that’s bigger than probably any of this," Reid said in his opening statement. "This was a nice microcosm of how the world should be, where it's competition. It's not people killing each other and doing all those crazy things that go on. All religions, all races out here, enjoying an event. 

"And if we can learn one thing from it, you know, as we go through it as a country here, man, that's it right there. Great competition. And then everybody gets along, and then shakes hands afterward, and go about your way there."

I want to say this was nice. Coach's heart was seemingly in the right place. 

But I'm not sure where his mind was at.

I'm not sure the context. Or even the actual accuracy of this happy Thanksgiving world Reid was referencing.

National Guard soldiers stand behind the crime scene tape at a corner in downtown Washington, DC, on November 26, 2025. Two National Guard soldiers were shot a few blocks from the White House, according to law enforcement. (Photo by Drew ANGERER / AFP via Getty Images)

Reid Aware Of World Events

It's pretty obvious Reid perhaps has gotten a chance, even on a short week of preparation, to understand what's happening around the world.

We have a war going on between Russia and Ukraine. We have military service members attacked, and one murdered, while on duty near the White House by an Afghan immigrant.

We have armed gunmen in Nigeria killing and kidnapping Christians in what U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz called "genocide wearing the mask of chaos."

In short, there's a lot of bad news, going on in the world right now. So, maybe Reid was feeling the pangs of all that when he stepped to the podium.

We don't know. Nobody apparently asked.

NFL Isn't All About Love

But the idea that an NFL game's great competition breeds some sort of paradise that brings competitors and fans together is, frankly, not entirely accurate.

I recall only a few weeks ago, Reid's Chiefs and the Detroit Lions played a very competitive game. And afterward, Lions safety Brian Branch swung at Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and bloodied his nose.

The NFL suspended Branch for one game the next day.

I also recall, just this week, one player punching another in the groin and the two getting into a scuffle after the game. Carolina's Tre'von Moehrig was suspended for one game for going, ahem, nutty on Jauan Jennings.

Did I mention the NFL has something of a spitting epidemic? 

Jalen Carter spit on Dak Prescott and got suspended. Ja'Marr Chase spit on Jalen Ramsey and got suspended.

Opposing Fans Don't Always Get Along

Have I mentioned that the lovefest at NFL games, and indeed at all sporting events, also sometimes goes sideways in the stands?

This media company has an actual section for fan brawls at football, baseball, basketball, hockey and other sporting events.

So, with much respect to Reid's depiction of competition bringing people together, that is sometimes true. Thankfully.

And sometimes not so much.