Chiefs’ Steve Spagnuolo shares fun story of how he got on Andy Reid’s good side
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was a guest on the latest episode of the New Heights podcast and had a fun discussion with the Kelce brothers.
Travis Kelce, the podcast co-host and Chiefs tight end, went into investigative reporter mode at one point during the talk. He was looking for a good tale about Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.
“You got any favorite Andy Reid stories from from back in the day or any gold you could tell us and keep it kicking?” Kelce asked Spagnuolo. “But you know I had to at least ask.”
As it just so happens, Spagnuolo did have a fun story about Reid. And it dated back to when Reid was head coach of the Eagles. Reid hired Spagnuolo as a defensive assistant in 1999 and he was with the team through the 2006 season.
That was Spagnuolo’s first full-time job with an NFL team and he wanted to make a good impression — on and off the field.
Reid is a self-professed “forkturian” who enjoys eating.
“I get the job in ‘99, I’m there two years. And (in) about the third year ... is when I met Maria, my wife,” Spagnuolo said. “And you’ve met Maria. She’s legendary, Jason, for the food that she makes. I think I was like quality control, or maybe I had become the safety coach or something. But I’m trying to climb the ladder, right? So the one way to climb the ladder is to keep the head coach, stay on his good side.
“So on Fridays when Maria would make the — whether it was banana pudding or the sweet potato pie or whatever — I’d always sneak one of those bad boys, maybe two or three of them, went into the head coach’s office, right? Hey coach these are for you.”
That made Travis and Jason Kelce laugh with delight. And Spagnuolo said the sweet treats just might have led to being hired by Reid as the Chiefs defensive coordinator in 2019.
The Chiefs have won three Super Bowl championships since Spags reunited with Reid.
“Hey Travis, maybe that’s why I got the chance to come here,” Spagnuolo said. “It had nothing to do with my coaching ability, it had to do with the banana pudding.”
Spanguolo added: “I love Andy. He’s the best.”
This story was originally published June 11, 2025 at 11:34 AM.
