The Kansas City Chiefs are heading back to the Super Bowl and one player highlighted a crucial coach who is critical to the team’s success.

Kansas City was able to knock off the Buffalo Bills to secure a spot in their third straight тιтle game – beating Josh Allen and Co. 32-29.

Part of that success came from the Chiefs staunch defense – which put the pressure on Allen late in the game, leading to the win.

On a crucial fourth down, the Chiefs defense ran a blitz that forced Allen to make a desperation throw that fell through the arms of тιԍнт end Dalton Kincaid and incomplete.

Speaking to SportsCenter after the game, Chiefs captain Chris Jones pointed to one person in particular as a key to the team’s success: defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.

Spagnuolo has been floated around NFL circles as a potential person to fill a head coaching vacancy – something Jones doesn’t want to see happen any time soon.

rest of the league CONTINUES to sleep“as long as they continue to let Spags be our defensive coordinator and not hire him as a head coach, we’re going to continue to win”legit might be the only way to end the dynasty pic.twitter.com/aSvQJaSBrz

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 27, 2025

Chiefs captain Chris Jones highlighted one member of their team key to their success

Jones jokingly hopes no one hires defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo as a head coach

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‘Um, as long as they continue to let Spags be our DC and not hire him as a head coach, we gonna continue to win man,’ Jones told ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt.

‘For me, he’s one of the greatest ᴀssistant coaches to ever coach the game. You look at his resume, he’s got one of the greatest resumes and… he finds a way to close man, that’s what Spags does. 

‘Whether it’s dropping me and covering the тιԍнт end or whether its sending cornerback pressure at the end of the game, that’s what he’s known for man.

‘He can dial up different schematics and different blitzes to affect an opposing quarterback. And he does a really good job at it.’

Spagnuolo, the 65-year-old Mᴀssachusetts native, has been coaching in football since the 1980s.

He’s coached at the college level at UMᴀss, Lafayette, UConn, Main, Rutgers, Bowling Green along with two stints in NFL Europe with the Barcelona Dragons and the Frankfurt Galaxy. In between those spots, he had a brief stay as the player personnel intern for the Washington Redskins.

The Springfield College alum got his first coaching job in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles under head coach Andy Reid. He climbed from defensive ᴀssistant, to defensive backs coach, and linebackers coach before moving to the NFC East rival New York Giants to be their defensive coordinator.

It was with the Giants that Spagnuolo won his first Super Bowl in a colossal upset of the then-undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.

Spagnuolo has been a head coach only once in a dreadful tenure with the St. Louis Rams

But Spagnuolo reunited with Andy Reid in 2017 which has led to a very successful partnership

After two seasons in New York, he took his first – and so far, only – head coaching gig to lead the St. Louis Rams. He struggled with them, putting up a record of 10-38 across three seasons – including a 1-15 first season and a 2-14 final season.

Following that rough patch, Spagnuolo became defensive coordinator of the New Orleans Saints for one season. He then went on to the Baltimore Ravens – serving as a defensive ᴀssistant, then the secondary coach.

He returned to the Giants to be there defensive coordinator for three seasons before being promoted to interim head coach when New York axed Ben McAdoo. Spagnuolo went 1-3 in his interim stint.

After a season away from the game, Spagnuolo reunited with Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs and the rest is history – with the ᴀssistant coach winning three Super Bowl тιтles. 

With only two head coaching vacancies remaining, it’s possible Spagnuolo stays another year with the Chiefs.

He’ll have a lot to prepare for as the Chiefs face off against the Philadelphia Eagles in two weeks time in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.