In case the message written on the “In Spags We Trust” T-shirts they wore on Sunday wasn’t clear enough, the Chiefs’ stars told the rest.
Without defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s genius schemes, player-friendly touches, and the homespun charm of bringing his wife’s banana cream pudding, Kansas City would have won its third title in the past five seasons. He would not have participated in the 2024 Super Bowl, where he is competing for the title. We go to the facility every week and share.
After the Chiefs stymied the dynamic Ravens, All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones said, “Given what Spags was able to do with this defense from last year to this year, I still think he could be a candidate for Assistant Coach of the Year.” I think so,” he said. AFC Championship game on the 10th. “How he was able to overcome so many difficulties and how he was able to develop so many players.”
Spagnuolo has established himself as one of the best assistant coaches in NFL history.
He is already the only offensive and defensive coordinator to win a Super Bowl in that role with multiple teams (2007 Giants, 2019, 2022 Chiefs), and if he wins against the 49ers on Feb. 11, , breaking the five-way tie and placing him in first place. The first coordinator to win four Super Bowls on both sides of the ball.
“Spags, he seems to perform even better as the games get bigger and the challenges get higher,” quarterback Patrick Mahomes said, rolling off the compliments often given to him.
New York-based players Tom Coughlin, Justin Tuck, and Antonio Pierce credit Spagnuolo with devising a pass rush that tormented Tom Brady and derailed the Patriots’ goal of an undefeated season in the 2008 Super Bowl. I benefited from doing so.
However, as with other great coordinators, Spagnuolo’s success did not translate into his one full-time opportunity as a head coach.
From 2009-11, the Rams had the third-worst winning percentage in NFL history at .208 (minimum 50 games played).
“If you look at defensive coordinators in the history of the game, he’s about as good a player as we’ve seen,” NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger told the Post. “If only there were more Spags.” [outspoken], maybe he can become a head coach again. But he’s very humble.
“It’s just that he understands how to use all of his items and understands what he has and what he doesn’t have. His game against Buffalo in the playoffs The plan was completely different than it was in Week 14 against Buffalo.”
Spagnuolo wrote another masterpiece against the Ravens, dictating the terms and allowing the NFL’s No. 1-ranked rushing attack to attempt a season-low 16 points (only six by running backs). The fourth-leading scorer offense only scored a break-play touchdown. Through the first 57 minutes, presumptive MVP Lamar Jackson posted the second-lowest QBR (42.9).
“We threw the book at Lamar. Zone pressure, man pressure, fake pressure, fake pressure that looked like pressure and ended up being a zone drop,” safety Justin Reed said. “We tried to do everything we could to confuse him and not make the same expression twice during the game.”
Spagnuolo trusted cornerbacks Rajarius Snead and Trent McDuffie — perhaps the best duo in the NFL — at the Island to tempt Jackson into making reckless deep throws.
According to Pro Football Focus, he completed 3 of 11 passes over 10 yards, including 2 of 7 passes over 20 yards.
“You don’t know what you’re going to get from Spags until the game is over,” Baldinger said. “They got deep shots and attacked the line of scrimmage really well on different fronts. They got Lamar the ball in the first half, chased him with blitzes in the second half, and crushed his limited scrambles.”
The Chiefs owe the Giants a debt of gratitude.
Their defense was in shambles before Spagnuolo arrived in 2019, then coached through several transfers as he finished second in scoring and second in total yards this season.
Spagnuolo’s second stint as the Giants defensive coordinator (2015-17), as interim head coach in place of the fired Ben McAdoo, ended with a 1-3 record and he was not retained by his successor, Pat Shurmer. Ta.
The following year, he spent time as a regular at NFL Films’ New Jersey headquarters, studying schemes with Baldinger and waiting for an opportunity such as reuniting with head coach Andy Reid, a friend from his college coaching days in the 1980s. Ta.
“Spags is the best defensive coordinator,” said Justin Reed, who played five play-callers during his career. “His defense is so fun to play and so dynamic. It creates a lot of special players.”
Some of those players might want to wear new shirts with Spagnuolo’s face on them in Las Vegas during the Super Bowl.
“To be honest, I was humbled and embarrassed,” Spagnuolo told Kansas City Fox4 during the on-field celebration. “Those guys enjoyed it. Thank God it worked out in the end, because I would have felt really bad if it didn’t. If you don’t win, these things don’t work out. So we’re going to try to find a way to win it.”
