Chiefs’ Tyreek Hill celebrates coaching combo of Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy: ‘It’s like Shaq and Kobe’

The term “instant classic” is often used in sports, most often overused, but it readily and justifiably applies to the matchup witnessed on NFL Divisional Weekend between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills. It was a fight for the ages between Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen — both establishing themselves as two of the best quarterbacks in football. In the end, it was Mahomes taking the win in overtime after mounting an harrowing 13-second game-tying drive in regulation following a series of haymakers between the two over the course of four quarters.

It was All-Pro wideout Tyreek Hill helping Mahomes land one of the final death blows on a 64-yard touchdown with just over a minute left in regulation to give the Chiefs a 33-29 lead. Allen would answer with one of his four touchdown strikes to Gabriel Davis, but the Chiefs outlasted them, and Hill made it clear after the game that Kansas City was never against the ropes seeing double.

And that’s in large part to their leadership in head coach Andy Reid and offensive coordinator Eric Bieiniemy.

“You got so many playmakers all over the field, that’s why you never panic — on defense, on offense and on special teams,” Hill told James Palmer of NFL Network. “And plus, you got one of the greatest coaches of all time in Andy Reid, Eric Bieniemy. That combo is nasty. It’s like Shaq and Kobe. It’s crazy.”

It’s unknown how long the duo will be together, with Bieniemy again garnering a lot of interest that will undoubtedly ramp up after Sunday’s efforts, but the Chiefs will worry about that later.

Advancing to yet another AFC Championship isn’t a far cry from the preseason expectations for the Chiefs, but it’s a country mile from the early season struggles that led to many wondering if their window to win another Super Bowl had slammed shut. It’s something Hill readily admits was driven by overconfidence, but that Reid and Bieniemy helped the team correct by reminding them they can lose to anyone on any given game day.

“There were times we felt like we were the sh-t,” Hill said. “We had to get back to … being humble, being grounded, holding each other accountable and playing for one another.”

They’d answer their 3-4 start to the season with an eight-game win streak en route to a 12-5 finish and the No. 2 seed in the AFC, and it took every ounce of firepower to stave off an upset from a worthy Bills team led by Allen, who’ll clearly be the class of the conference for the next decade — along with Mahomes and others like Justin Herbert. But, again, the Bills will have to lick their wounds and try to reload while the Chiefs advance at their expense.

“I’m just proud to be a part of this team, man,” said Hill. “Go Chiefs.”