Andy Reid and Jon Gruden Feud Over Raiders’ Week 5 ‘Victory Lap’
The Chiefs have some bulletin board material
The lone blemish on the Chiefs’ 2020 record is a Week 5 loss to the Raiders, a 40–32 defeat at home. Derek Carr was lights out, Josh Jacobs scored twice on the ground, Patrick Mahomes threw a costly fourth-quarter interception and Jon Gruden had his first win over the Chiefs as the coach of the silver and black.
After the game, the Raiders’ buses took a lap around Arrowhead Stadium before heading off to the airport. The celebration was reported by Nick Jacobs, a sports reporter at Kansas City’s 41 Action News and backed up by a guy who claimed to work at Arrowhead and witness the victory lap.
The incident occurred more than a month ago, but as the Chiefs and Raiders prepare to face off again this weekend in Las Vegas, it’s still a topic of conversation. The Chiefs are already one of the best teams in the NFL, and Reid is 18–3 as a head coach following a bye week. The last thing the Raiders need is for Kansas City to be playing with an extra motivation.
Andy Reid was asked Monday whether the victory lap was an indication of how much that game meant to the Raiders and whether the Chiefs needed to match that intensity.
“They won the game, so they can do anything they want to do,“ Reid told reporters. “That’s not our style, but we’ll get ourselves back and ready to play. That’s where we’re at.”
Reid was asked later whether he thought the Chiefs held an advantage over the Raiders after losing the first matchup. He said no.
“I think they [do] or they wouldn’t have driven the bus around the stadium,” he added.
Gruden was also asked about the victory lap, and it was clear from the look on his face that he wasn’t happy to be talking about it. Gruden proposed that perhaps he took the victory lap to rub it in the face of the Raiders’ bus driver.
“Not really,” Gruden said when asked whether the moment was bulletin board material. “I mean, you can find the smart-aleck bus driver in Kansas City who made some snide comments when we got on the bus, maybe that’s why we drove around the stadium—just to tick him off. This is ridiculous. Next question.”
Oh, sure, a “smart-aleck bus driver.” If there’s anything ridiculous about this it’s Gruden’s explanation. Why does he seem more ticked off about the victory lap than the coach he was showing up?
Even as pro sports feuds go, this one is pretty tame. Nobody’s going to throw any punches on Sunday because the Raiders took a tour of the parking lot six weeks ago. But this is the kind of silly thing that can get blown out of proportion when the teams involved already have it out for each other.
“It’s two good football teams playing each other,” Reid told reporters. “I don’t think either team likes the other that much, as they’ve stated before.”
The best of SI
The Thunder's trading Chris Paul to the Suns to pair with Devin Booker should be a win-win. ... Tom Verducci explains why J.T. Realmuto is the top MLB free agent available this winter. ... The NHL’s big alternate jersey announcement curiously obscured the Blackhawks’ logo.
Around the sports world
Here are the “reverse-retro” NHL jerseys for all 31 teams. ... Robbery charges against former Giants defensive back DeAndre Baker were dropped after his accusers’ lawyer was arrested for extortion. ... Despite leaving on a cart at the end of Monday Night Football, Nick Foles’s injury isn’t believed to be all that serious. ... The Padres have signed Mike Clevinger to a two-year deal but also made the surprise announcement that he would undergo Tommy John surgery. ... An American swimmer set a new world record in the 100-meter individual medley.
Incredible catch
Thielen’s cleats were sweet, too
The NBA offseason got off to a hot start
Cordarrelle Patterson’s kickoff return: 104 yards. The Bears offense’s entire output: 149 yards.
This better not be how Brees’s career ends
Who’s going to make it this year?
The other guy didn’t even get a shot in
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought a Welsh soccer team together
Make this happen, Cardinals
100 ways for me to break my ankle
Worth it
Not sports
A computer glitch caused a French news organization to publish a bunch of obituaries for people who are still alive. ... Jerry Bruckheimer says Bad Boys was originally supposed to feature Dana Carvey and Jon Lovitz instead of Will Smith and Martin Lawrence.
Don’t even think about it, moose
The internet is a snake eating its tale
A good song
Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.
