Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio has gained quite a reputation for himself since he started writing in 2000. He has drawn the ire of Kansas City Chiefs fans several times over the years, but none more so than his recent statements regarding head coach Andy Reid possibly retiring. The rumor that Florio started has not been substantiated in any way, but the attention it gained has already done its damage.
The Andy Reid retirement rumors continue to circle for Kansas City Chiefs fans.
Sports pundits Colin Cowherd and Nick Wright reacted to the reported possibility on the Jan. 24 episode of The Colin Cowherd Podcast. Cowherd explicitly presented this discussion as hypothetical, based on a few factors.
"Andy and the Chiefs with a Super Bowl... then Andy says I've had health issues... Mahomes is not going to get cheaper. I'll do it for Spagnuolo; I'll do it for Nagy; and then Andy retires."
Cowherd then took it a step further and speculated about former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel filling Reid's shoes. Wright gave the idea, though, but promptly poured cold water on the Reid rumors, saying he "seems to really love it" in Kansas City. You can view the entire discourse here on YouTube.
This has gotten out of hand. Florio's updated rumor is that "the Chiefs have a possible Andy Reid retirement after the current postseason on their radar screen." The future Hall of Fame coach had to deny this fabrication less than a month ago, heading into the Wild Card round.
"I haven’t even thought about that," Reid said before the playoffs began. "I’m thinking about one thing. I figured that would come up when you guys were asking these questions because I’m old—but not that old."
If you need more recent backing, Tracy Wolfson has you covered. The CBS Sports reporter had this to say on Jan. 25 regarding the rumors.
From my conversations with a lot of people close to Andy Reid and 2 years left on his contract I would be very surprised if Reid retired#Chiefs https://t.co/cN3wH1YOM5
— Tracy Wolfson (@tracywolfson) January 25, 2024
If Florio excelled in a sport, it would be baseball. After all, his reporting hinges on people forgetting his swings and misses and lauding him for his rare home runs. This rumor especially reeks of him putting something out there and then looking smart if it somehow happens. If it doesn't, then the majority of fans will forget about it. That is the business.