Former Browns coach Mike Pettine observed two Chiefs practices this week

Former Browns coach Mike Pettine visited the Chiefs’ practices on Tuesday and Wednesday, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said.

Reid said Pettine and the Chiefs’ defensive coordinator, Bob Sutton, have a history together. Both were Jets assistants from 2009 to 2011, with Sutton serving as the senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach under Pettine, the defensive coordinator, from that period.

“They’re very good friends,” Reid said.

Reid noted that Pettine, who served as the Browns’ coach from 2014 to 2015 before he was fired in January, is using the next year of his life to regroup.

“He’s out of work right now, and he was a coach’s kid, so he’s been around the game his whole life,” Reid said. “All of a sudden now, he’s got a year here where he can go around and visit friends.”

Reid said he knew Pettine from his days as the Philadelphia Eagles’ head coach, as Pettine served as the head coach at North Penn High School from 1997 to 2001, which went 45-15 under his leadership.

“He’s a Philadelphia guy — his dad was a legendary high school coach there, as was Mike, so I knew him from back then,” Reid said. “It was good to have him out here.”

Pettine, 49, had success during his three-year stint as the Jets’ defensive coordinator under Rex Ryan. He also spent 2013 as the Buffalo Bills’ defensive coordinator before he was hired by Cleveland, which went 10-22 in his two seasons as head coach.

Pettine was fired with two years left on a deal that was reportedly worth about $3.5 million per year, according to the Akron Beacon-Journal. Typically, fired NFL coaches still collect the money due to them after their dismissal, unless they are hired by another team.

This story was originally published June 2, 2016 at 2:24 PM with the headline "Former Browns coach Mike Pettine observed two Chiefs practices this week."