As a leader, I have found that the best way to address these factors is to remain faithful to the team building process. In New England, the pressure to win was driven from within – and it was always the same whether we were trying to win our first or fourth Lombardi Trophy. Winning – period – was the standard.
This meant that we had to ensure that our success did not derail the processes and systems that ultimately made us successful. In fact, the mission statement at the end of every page of our scouting manual – which Ernie Adams and I wrote in June 2000 – was: We are building a big, strong, fast, tough, smart and disciplined football team that regularly competes for championships. With an approach focused on process rather than outcome, we have been able to maintain our success. It has also helped our Patriots teams avoid the potential pitfalls that inevitably arise every season.
A simple but very real trap: teams that believe that being as good as the previous season is good enough. That’s rarely – if ever – enough, as evidenced by the fact that the NFL has only had a repeat Super Bowl champion eight times in its history. Another very real pitfall: While the offseason is shorter for a championship team, the demands from the organization and outside agencies become greater.
Overall, the 2023 Chiefs are in a great position to avoid these pitfalls, and there are four main reasons why.
1) Humility. Essentially, it’s the three key people in leadership positions – owner Clark Hunt, head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes – who continue to drive the organization forward. Hunt is one of the most humble people – not just the owner – I have ever seen. The same goes for Reid, the fifth-winningest coach in NFL history. And sure it helps that Mahomes is the best player in football right now, but the fact that he’s obsessed with winning – although not in a way that negatively affects the team – despite already having multiple MVP awards and Super Bowl title undoubtedly motivates the rest of the squad.
2) Constantly re-creating yourself. The Chiefs have done this both from a strategic perspective and with their personnel. Reid continually optimizes and evolves the offense, challenging the extremely talented Mahomes to improve and expand his game to stay one step ahead of Kansas City’s opponents. Kansas City’s personnel department has been making moves to build a championship roster for a decade, from John Dorsey to Brett Veach. The Chiefs have a strong talent acquisition model, consistently bringing in the right players in free agency and the draft to learn from great coaches and teachers like Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. This has allowed them to continually overcome the inevitable attrition in a league with a salary cap.
Speaking of personnel changes, during his five seasons as a starter, Mahomes had a bevy of pass catchers come and go – including Tyreek Hill, Kareem Hunt, Sammy Watkins, Demarcus Robinson, Le’Veon Bell, Mecole Hardman and Josh Gordon. to name a few. Travis Kelce, who was phenomenal for nearly a decade, was the one constant for Mahomes. The two-time MVP’s pass-catching ability is comparable to any great quarterback of the last two decades. Tom Brady did it in New England, Drew Brees did it in New Orleans, and Peyton Manning did it in both Indianapolis and Denver. A quarterback who can truly make the people around him stand out transforms an offense from good to exceptional.