It’s not clear if Chargers coach Mike McCoy will return for a fourth season, but he continues to draw praise from opponents even as the losses pile up.

“He is a real good person and a real good football coach,” Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid said on Wednesday. “I think the Chargers are fortunate to have him, and he does a heck of a job.”

Reid said his film study of the Chargers (2-7) showed an offensive system that holds up well despite injuries.

“They have been banged up this year,” he said. “Sometimes a bye week can help you out a little bit, giving guys a chance to come back, so we are preparing for everybody.


“Mike has done a great job of keeping everything going, and they still play fast no matter who they put in.”

Coaches praise coaches, especially when the two are on the verge of squaring off.

Reid is not just another coach, having directed the Philadelphia Eagles to four NFC Championship Games and a Super Bowl. He has gone 11-5, 9-7 and 4-5 since taking over the Chiefs, who were 2-14 in the preceding season.

Though he isn’t the smoothest game manager, Reid states an impressive case as the AFC West’s top coach.


As a Green Bay Packers tight ends coach in 1995, he first got to know McCoy, then a practice-squad quarterback.

McCoy’s Chargers are 2-2 against Reid’s Chiefs, who are a three-point favorite for Sunday’s game.

In the Chargers’ most recent game, McCoy went against mentor and friend John Fox, who called him a “terrific coach.”

Fox improved to 5-1 against McCoy with the Week 9 victory.


Will McCoy keep his job after this season?

His bosses at Chargers Park are aware of the injury barrage. They see fight in the team’s performance. McCoy is under contract for next year.

Should McCoy have reason to seek an NFL coaching job elsewhere someday, he may be on the short list of head coaches such as Fox and Reid.