A Kansas City sports radio host has been taken off the air for comments about Chiefs coach Andy Reid lacking discipline, citing Reid’s son, who died of a drug overdose.
“We are aware of the controversial comments made by Kevin Kietzman during yesterday’s broadcast of Between the Lines,” Sports Radio WHB said in a statement. “We have decided to take the immediate step to take Kevin off the air until further notice as we review this matter. We take Kevin’s comments and those of all on-air staff seriously. Kevin’s comments were clearly not to his or our standards. Please know that we will take necessary appropriate actions. We sincerely apologize to Andy Reid and his family, the Kansas City Chiefs organization and our loyal listeners and share their concerns.”
Discussing whether the Chiefs would discipline Tyreek Hill, Kietzman said that Reid has never been big on discipline.
“Andy Reid does not have a great record of fixing players,” Kietzman said on the air. “He doesn’t. Discipline is not his thing. It did not work out particularly well in his family life, and that needs to be added to this, as we’re talking about the Chiefs. He wasn’t real great at that either. He’s had a lot of things go bad on him, family and players. He is not good at fixing people. He is not good at discipline. That is not his strength. His strength is designing football plays.”
Reid’s son, Garrett Reid, died of a drug overdose at the Eagles’ training camp in 2012, when Reid was the Eagles’ head coach. Many who heard Kietzman’s statement interpreted it as a reference to Garrett’s death, but Kietzman denied that, saying he was referring to legal troubles Garrett and his brother had before Garrett died.
“I never mentioned one word about the tragic death of Andy Reid’s son and quickly corrected a caller who did,” Kietzman wrote on Twitter. “I was talking about the owner’s record of ‘fixing’ players, the team’s record and Andy’s record. I was referencing the drug addiction and convictions for dealing drugs. When they served time and Reid hired them to work for his football teams, it was no longer a private matter. But blaming a parent for the death of their child in these circumstances is unthinkable and reprehensible.”
Kietzman’s bosses apparently didn’t buy that explanation. It is unclear whether he will ever be back on the air.