John Harbaugh and Andy Reid know each other well from their days in Philadelphia where Harbaugh served on Reid’s staff from 1999-2007. Harbaugh was a special teams coordinator hired by Ray Rhodes in 1998, a role that Reid retained him in when he took over the team.
During Monday’s press conference, Harbaugh was asked about his former mentor and the Ravens HC had plenty of nice things to say about his ex-boss and their near-decade together.
It goes back a long, long way. [I have the] utmost respect for Andy [and the] utmost appreciation for what he’s accomplished as a coach. We were together for 10 years — the first 10 years [of my career] there in Philly. We were in a lot of Championship Games [and] a lot of playoff games. I learned so much. I just learned so much as a coach and as a person. … Andy’s a great coach. He has a great staff. … It’s just a very talented group of people, and [I] have the utmost respect for them.
Harbaugh on coaching against Andy Reid: “Obviously, it’s a big deal in terms of the relationship. It goes back a long, long way. We were together for 10 years. We were in a lot of championship games and a lot of playoff games. I learned so much as a coach and as a person.”
— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) January 22, 2024
Harbaugh also recalled an Andy Reid story that’s stuck with him throughout his career:
One of the things with Andy [was] he had this 3×5 card behind his desk on his bulletin board. It said, ‘Don’t judge.’ I got the nerve to ask him about it one time, and he just basically [said] it was a Biblical principle. Take people where they’re at. Assume the best. Try to communicate with everybody on equal terms. I’ve never forgotten that.
The student will face the teacher once again at 3 PM ET on CBS this Sunday.