Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid called Taylor Swift “a sweetheart” during an interview on the Y’s Guys podcast Monday.
BYU basketball recruit and known Swiftie Marya Hudgins requested the hosts ask Reid about the superstar.
“Coach Reid, how do you feel that Taylor Swift fans impacted the NFL and the Chiefs last season?” Y’s Guys host Blaine Fowler read.
“Mariah, how awesome is that, man? Here she is — she brings a whole new group of young ladies and older ladies to be interested in this sport,” Reid said. “And it’s a great sport. It’s great for everybody. Flag football right now is going crazy. Girls flag football is going crazy and I love that part. There’s so many great lessons you can learn about life in this sport, and it’s fun to play so I will tell you, Taylor, she’s a sweetheart.”
He also mentioned Swift’s penchant for baking.
“She came in and made all the offensive lineman homemade Pop-tarts,” Reid said. “And she won over the group right there. It’s kind of neat to see her where she doesn’t have to be ‘it.’ She can sit back, and I think that she’s enjoying that, being able to escape from being Taylor Swift for a minute and being a fan. She’s all in.”
How Andy Reid knew Taylor Swift’s family before she started dating Travis Kelce
Reid explained more about how he knew Swift’s family before she started dating tight end Travis Kelce. Shortly after Swift made her first appearance at a Chiefs game, Reid joked that he set the pair up.
“You know what, Blaine, we’ve known her since she was a little girl,” Reid said. “And funny story, when Trav met her, she goes ‘you know I know your coach and his wife’ and he goes ‘what coach?’ She goes ‘Coach Reid’ and he goes ‘oh great, you know him.’”
In the past, Swift’s dad, was known as an Eagles fan — Swift even mentions an Eagles T-shirt in her song “Gold Rush.” Reid said he met Scott Swift “when he was with the Eagles” and mentioned how her dad played football in college — he played as a lineman for Hawaii and for University of Delaware in the 1970s, according to The Sporting News. Despite being an avid Eagles fan for years, in the last year, Scott Swift has been seen sporting more and more Chiefs gear.
When asked who his favorite singer is, Reid told Y’s Guys hosts Dave McCann and Fowler that Kenny Chesney is his favorite male singer and that Swift is his favorite female singer.
What other major sports personalities have said about Taylor Swift
Other major players in the sports world have also talked about Swift and her impact on the NFL, as well as praised her athleticism for being able to put on an active three and a half hour show multiple nights per week.
Here’s what other major sports personalities have said:
- Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes: “I’ve met a lot of famous people now in my life. Taylor’s probably the most down-to-earth person (I’ve met) that’s been on that stage for that long. … She’s never not working. Even when she’s taking her downtime, she’s working on something. Shooting a music video or singing a song or writing a song. You can see it by how she talks.”
- Charles Barkley: “If you’re screaming at T-Swift saying she ruined (football), you’re just a loser.”
- ESPN personality Chris Berman: When asked if she’s good for football, he said, “Absolutely, and I’ll tell you why... I think she’s legitimate. I’m in my mid-thirties, I’m cheering on my guy and I’m having fun at the game so if you just take it from that part I think that’s pretty legitimate ... I mean, she fills a stadium of 80,000, so it’s not, ‘oh, I need to be seen again,’ right? I think anyone who thinks that’s wrong“ So, it was like, I heard it twice in a day, getting a haircut and in a bank and going, anything that makes somebody a pro football fan from nothing can’t be all bad,”
- Former Arizona Cardinals defensive end JJ Watt: “I mean, she’s literally there supporting her significant other, and that’s what you should do as a significant other. So I think that it’s great.” Watt also attended The Eras Tour in Mar. 2023 and said, “You can tell when somebody does something at the top of their game. She crushed it.”
- Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal: “If I see Taylor Swift and get to shake her hand, take a picture, I’ll be good. She’s a fabulous person. I’m happy for her. I’m proud of her. She’s done a lot. She’s definitely a cultural icon.”