The Chiefs appear to have finalized their coaching staff. I’m going to review some members of the coaching staff, including the new faces, and give a fun fact some people might not know about each coach. I’ll also discuss how long they’ve been a coach and if and how long they played in the NFL. However, the coaches I’m giving details for are the main coaches (head coach, coordinators, etc) and new coaches or coaches with new titles.
Our fearless leader head coach Andy Reid is entering his 10th year as the Chiefs head coach. This is overall his 24th year as a head coach and his 41st season as a coach at any level. His first NFL coaching job was as the Packers’ assistant offensive line coach and their tight ends coach in 1992. We all know he was an offensive tackle at BYU, but one fun fact about his playing career is he was a college teammate of Jim McMahon, a member of the Bears 1985 Super Bowl Champion team, and one of the players that performed the “Super Bowl Scuffle”.
Eric Bieniemy is entering his 5th season as the Chiefs offensive coordinator and 10th overall with the Chiefs. He’s been a coach for 22 seasons and became a coach one year after his playing career ended. Bieniemy played 9 seasons in the NFL for the Chargers, Bengals, and even 1 season for Andy Reid with the Eagles, scoring 11 touchdowns in his 9 seasons. His fun fact is he was a member of Colorado’s only National Championship football team, along with former Broncos head coach Vance Joseph. He is one of only 3 remaining members from Andy Reid’s first staff with the Chiefs, other than Matt Nagy (more on him later).
Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is entering his 4th season as the Chiefs defensive coordinator. He is in his 42nd year overall as a coach. His coaching history includes a 3-season stint as the Rams head coach and serving as interim head coach for the Giants in 2017 putting together a record of 11-41 as a head coach. Spagnuolo’s first NFL coaching job was under Andy Reid with the Eagles as a defensive assistant. He served under Reid until he got his first defensive coordinator position with the Giants in 2007, the year they beat the undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl. His fun fact, despite being almost strictly a defensive coach his entire coaching career, he played wide receiver at Division III school Springfield College.
Dave Toub is one of the best special teams coaches in the NFL. He’s turned a kicker that was sitting on the Panthers’ practice squad in 2017 into the 2nd most accurate kicker in NFL history. He also turned an undrafted free agent punter who wasn’t even named all-conference in college into one of the most underappreciated punters in the league. He’s another one of the coaches still left from Andy Reid’s original coaching staff with the Chiefs. He is also the assistant head coach. His first NFL job was also with Reid as the Eagles special teams coach. He’s entering his 10th year with the Chiefs and his 37th overall as a coach. He spent a couple of training camps on NFL rosters but never played a regular-season game. His fun fact is a he was a member of the Eagles 1985 Draft Class that included Randall Cunningham, Cunningham being the team’s 2nd round draft selection, Toub being the 9th round selection.
The first coach the Chiefs lost in the offseason was Matt House, the Chiefs linebackers coach. He was hired by LSU to be their defensive coordinator. He was replaced with Brandon Daly, who had previously been the Chiefs run game coordinator and defensive line coach. This is his 4th season with the Chiefs and his 26th overall as a coach. He also was former Chief Jared Allen’s defensive line coach for the last two years Allen played for the Vikings. His fun fact is his first NFL coaching job was as Steve Spagnuolo’s defensive line coach when Spagnuolo was the Rams head coach.
Daly’s title change left the Chiefs defensive line coach position open. Joe Cullen was the Chiefs’ first and only outside hire of the offseason. Cullen had previously served as the Jaguars’ defensive coordinator for the 2021 season. His coaching career has been almost entirely as a defensive line coach. His fun fact is his first NFL job was with the Lions as their defensive line coach from 2006 to 2008, which also means he was their defensive line coach for the winless 2008 season. He was a 3-time all-conference nose guard in college at UMass but didn’t make it to the NFL.
Quarterbacks coach Mike Kafka was considered to be the likely replacement if and when Eric Bieniemy left for a head coaching job elsewhere. Unfortunately, former Chiefs offensive coordinator (in 2012) and new Giants head coach Brian Daboll beat the Chiefs to it as he was hired as the Giants offensive coordinator. Kafka has been replaced by an old friend, Matt Nagy. He was the Chiefs quarterbacks coach when Andy Reid was first hired. He was later promoted to offensive coordinator in 2016 before leaving to be the Bears head coach in 2018. This will be his 15th season as a coach, all of which have been the NFL. Excluding his 3 season stint as the Bears’ head coach, Nagy’s entire coaching career has been working under Andy Reid, including time both coaches spent with the Eagles. A fun fact about him is in college at Delaware, he was a teammate of current Chiefs general manager Brett Veach. Nagy was a quarterback, Veach was a running back and wide receiver on those Blue Hens teams.
Sam Madison had been the Chiefs’ secondary/cornerbacks coach since 2019. This offseason, Madison was hired by the team he played 9 seasons for, the Dolphins, as their cornerbacks coach. While the Chiefs did not hire someone with that exact title this offseason, Donald D’Alesio was hired as a safeties coach, the closest title to what Madison’s title was. D’Alesio had served as the Chiefs’ defensive assistant for a single season before having his job title changed. He is entering his 7th season as a coach and only his 2nd in the NFL. I can’t really find any fun facts for him, but I can provide a couple about where he played his college football. He played his college football at Youngstown State, which also produced notable coaches such as former Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio and former Kansas coach Mark Mangino, additionally, actor Ed O’Neill, best known for roles on “Married… With Children” and “Modern Family”, was a defensive lineman at Youngstown State.
Every other position for the Chiefs is a returning coach. Position coaches not named already will include Greg Lewis (RB), Joe Bleymaier (WR), Tom Melvin (TE), Andy Heck (OL), Ken Flajole (OLB), and Dave Merritt (DB). The Chiefs also have three assistant position coaches, Corey Matthaei (OL), David Girardi (QB), and Terry Bradden (DL). The Chiefs also have two quality control coaches, Connor Embee (Offense) and Alex Whittingham (Defense). Other non-position-specific assistants include Dan Williams (assistant to head coach), Porter Ellett (offensive quality coach), and Andy Hill (assistant special teams coach).
The Chiefs have multiple returning faces on the coaching staff. Continuity is important to a coaching staff but can be difficult to maintain if your team is good. The Chiefs have one brand new coach, 1 coach returning to the team, and two coaches who received new titles this offseason after losing 3 coaches to other teams. We’ll see what kind of impact they have.
