Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid embraced the holiday spirit this Christmas Day by surprising his team dressed as Santa Claus. After the Chiefs’ 29-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 25, Reid appeared in the locker room, delighting his players. However, quarterback Patrick Mahomes had a humorous take on the situation, saying Reid’s Santa suit no longer quite suited him.
Mahomes, 29, joked that Reid, 66, might need to reconsider playing Santa due to his slimming physique. “He’s getting kinda skinny. He’s getting kinda skinny for the Santa,” Mahomes said with a smile. Despite his playful comments, Mahomes also acknowledged that Reid still “fits the role perfectly,” expressing that his coach’s health improvements made him a “skinny Santa” from now on.
This wasn’t Reid’s first time dressing up as Santa for the Chiefs. The coach had donned the jolly red suit back in 2017 when the Chiefs played the Miami Dolphins on Christmas Eve. Mahomes vaguely recalled that moment from his early days with the team, when he was a backup quarterback. He took over as the starter in 2018, after serving as Tyler Bray’s backup the previous season.
Reid shared with reporters that an “elf” was involved in preparing his Santa outfit for the Christmas surprise. “I can’t tell you the secrets,” Reid teased, adding a playful remark to the non-believers: “But there was an elf involved. For all you non-believers out there, doggone it.”
The locker room moment became even more festive when Reid, dressed as Santa, presented his team with a special gift. “How ‘bout those Chiefs!” Reid exclaimed, showing his pride in the team’s success. “Merry Christmas, men. Proud of you, dudes! Proud of you. For the present, you get home-field advantage!”
The Chiefs’ victory against the Steelers secured them the No. 1 seed in the AFC, ensuring that they would enjoy a first-round bye and potentially host playoff games at their home stadium, Arrowhead, leading up to Super Bowl LIX in February.
As the celebration continued, Chiefs equipment manager Chris Shropshire joined in by emerging from an equipment case dressed as an elf. He presented Reid with a game ball, further adding to the festive mood in the locker room.
