ExtremeRavens Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 Some of Leslie Frazier’s fondest memories from his time as the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive backs coach were the days when he and John Harbaugh would duck out of their first-floor offices inside Veterans Stadium, stroll down the hall and catch a Phillies game. “I’m a big baseball fan,” Frazier, most recently the Buffalo Bills’ defensive coordinator and currently an analyst for NFL Network, told The Baltimore Sun. “We could just walk in and sit and watch a game. We’d just sit down and chill and relax for a few innings and then go back to work. That’s so unique.” For Mike Reed, another former Eagles defensive backs and special teams coach now coaching at Clemson, it was what he calls “great fellowship” over some “good food late at night,” refusing to divulge the details with a hearty laugh. Ron Rivera, meanwhile, recalled his days as the team’s linebackers coach nearly two decades before his stint as the Commanders coach and a helpful piece of advice he received about handling problems with players away from the watchful eyes of ownership and the general manager. They were all young coaches trying to find their way in the NFL. They are also just a few branches of the coaching tree of Andy Reid, who coached the Eagles from 1999 to 2012 and has helmed the Chiefs since 2013. Three of his former assistants have reached the Super Bowl as head coaches, with two of them (Harbaugh and Doug Pederson) having won it. In all, 11 former assistants under Reid in Philadelphia and Kansas City have gone on to become head coaches in the NFL, with five of them still in that role at the start of this season. “We were more than just co-workers,” Frazier said about his four seasons with the Eagles from 1999 to 2002, a stint that included two NFC championship game appearances. “There was a genuine love for each other. That superseded what we had to get done on the football field, and on top of that we were successful.” Reed described the experience similarly. “Great chemistry,” he said. “You wouldn’t be surprised to see guys in each other’s offices having conversations about more than football. You don’t see a lot of that in the NFL. A lot of times, it’s a job and that’s it. “And Andy, he’s like the godfather.” Sunday’s AFC championship game between the Ravens and Chiefs features no shortage of juicy storylines. There’s last year’s NFL Most Valuable Player, Kansas City quarterback and two-time world champion Patrick Mahomes, against this year’s presumptive MVP, Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson, who is trying to reach his first Super Bowl. There’s the battle of two of the league’s best defenses, with the Ravens leading the NFL in sacks (60) and points allowed per game (16.1) and the Chiefs second in sacks (57) and points allowed per game (17.1). And, of course, there’s Harbaugh against Reid, pupil vs. teacher. The two men have faced off as head coaches seven times, with Reid, 65, owning a 5-2 mark against his former assistant. Four of those wins came with the Chiefs. Then-Eagles coach Andy Reid, left, talks with Ravens coach John Harbaugh before a game in Philadelphia on Sept. 16, 2012. (Rob Carr/Getty) The lone win for Harbaugh, 61, against Reid’s Kansas City club came the last time the two teams met, in Week 2 of the 2021 season when the Ravens rallied to a 36-35 victory in Baltimore. Before that, it was all Kansas City, including a 27-24 overtime win in 2018. But never have the two met with so much at stake, in this case, a trip to the Super Bowl. “It’s a big deal in terms of the relationship,” Harbaugh said Monday. “It goes back a long, long way. [I have the] utmost respect for Andy, utmost appreciation for what he’s accomplished as a coach. We were together for 10 years — the first 10 years there in Philly. We were in a lot of championship games, a lot of playoff games. I learned so much. “Then, competing against him now all these years has been really challenging. Andy’s a great coach. He has a great staff.” Harbaugh’s tenure in Philadelphia began before Reid even got there. He was hired as special teams coordinator in 1998 by then-coach Ray Rhodes. But after the Eagles went 3-13 that season, Rhodes was fired. Reid, who was the Green Bay Packers’ quarterbacks coach under Mike Holmgren, was hired to replace him, and in a somewhat unusual move, he retained Harbaugh along with three other holdovers from the Eagles’ staff. “John is an intense dude,” Frazier said. “He had our special teams playing at a high level, so I’m sure that’s why Andy retained him. “Their dynamic was two guys who had different coaching styles, but both being very demanding of playing up to the standard. John was more in your face, whereas Andy was more communicating in short bursts what he wanted and how he wanted it. That was the beauty of the staff that Andy put together; it wasn’t a staff of yes men.” It didn’t take long for Harbaugh to make an impression. In one of his first meetings with Reid, he recalled seeing a small note card on a bulletin board behind the coach’s desk. It had the words “Don’t judge” written on it. “I got the nerve to ask him about it one time, and he just basically [said] it was a Biblical principle,” Harbaugh said. “Take people where they’re at. Assume the best. Try to communicate with everybody on equal terms. I’ve never forgotten that.” Though he stayed in Philadelphia for nine years, it was obvious to those around him that Harbaugh would one day be the one behind the desk, and in 2008 Baltimore hired him to replace Brian Billick. Though he famously wasn’t the first choice of owner Steve Bisciotti, the decision paid off. In his fifth year in Baltimore, Harbaugh led the Ravens to a Super Bowl title. And in 2019, he was named NFL Coach of the Year after the Ravens went 14-2 in the regular season. Now, he is on the cusp again. Harbaugh’s days with the Eagles are long behind him, but they forever shaped him and the coach he has become. “We were all at that good learning age,” Rivera said of his time with Harbaugh and the others in Philadelphia. “We knew enough to be dangerous, but we didn’t know enough to be really, really good. A lot of us wanted to be really, really good. “It seemed like Andy trusted [Harbaugh] right off the bat. You could see John going about his business in such an unbelievably professional manner already. He understood the responsibilities from the beginning.” Added Reed: “[Harbaugh] was a great leader. He wasn’t afraid to call people out and tell people the truth. It wasn’t gray. And he truly cared for guys, which is why he’s been so successful in Baltimore.” And all that stands in the way of a second trip to the Super Bowl for Harbaugh is his former mentor and a few other Eagles assistants during his time in Philadelphia, including defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. Come kickoff Sunday, he likely won’t be thinking too much about them or his time in Philadelphia with Reid. But he is beyond grateful for the experience. “Andy came in, [and] I was hoping to stay, and he gave me an opportunity to do it,” Harbaugh said. “I was young and just figuring things out. “That was good of him, and hope he’s glad he did, looking back on it.” AFC championship game Chiefs at Ravens Sunday, 3 p.m. TV: CBS Radio: 97.9 FM, 101.5 FM, 1090 AM Line: Ravens by 3 1/2 View the full article Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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