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Shula Record Focus Now Shifts to Andy Reid

Miami Dolphins Hall of Fame coach Don Shula's wins record no longer threatened by Bill Belichick

Alain Poupart

Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross shares a laugh with former Dolphins coach Don Shula at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on October 20, 2013.
Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross shares a laugh with former Dolphins coach Don Shula at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on October 20, 2013. / Allen Eyestone / USA TODAY NETWORK
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Bill Belichick's decision to become head coach at the University of North Carolina grabbed the NFL headlines and came with many layers.

One of the biggest ones is that Belichick's five-year contract pretty much ends his pursuit of the NFL career victories record belonging to Miami Dolphins Hall of Fame coach Don Shula.

Belichick will begin his college coaching career with 333 NFL victories, 14 short of the 347 amassed by Shula during a career spent mostly with the Dolphins.

Belichick likely would have needed two more NFL seasons to reach or surpass Shula, but he was passed over during the hiring cycle last offseason when the Los Angeles Chargers, Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders, Washington Commanders, Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons all chose new coaches.

The question, of course, always was whether an NFL organization would hire the 72-year-old Belichick and give him the kind of authority he likely would want.

THE ANDY REID THREAT

While Belichick longer is a threat to Shula's record, Andy Reid just keeps chugging along toward it.

And his pace has been furious with the Kansas City Chiefs enjoying an absolutely dominant run.

With the Chiefs' 12-1 record this season, Reid now has 296 career victories between his 14 years with the Philadelphia Eagles and 11-plus with Kansas City.

That puts him at 51 wins behind Shula, which means five more seasons if Kansas City averages 10 wins a year plus at least one playoff win.

Reid is 66 years old and has shown no interest in retiring, so he definitely poses a threat to Shula's status as the NFL's all-time winningest coach, which he became in 1993 and kept adding to his win total until he was done after the 1995 season.

For those looking for those comparisons, Shula had a .677 winning percentage in the regular season and .528 in the playoffs in his 33 NFL seasons; Reid is at .650 in the regular season and .619 in the playoffs; and Belichick is at .647 in the regular season and .705 in the playoffs.

Additional reading:

-- Remember Don Shula: A Timeline

-- Paying tribute to Don Shula

-- Don Shula: In his own words

Published
Alain Poupart
ALAIN POUPART

Alain Poupart is the publisher/editor of All Dolphins and co-host of the All Dolphins Podcast. Alain has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989 for various publications and media outlets, including Dolphin Digest, The Associated Press, the Dolphins team website, and the Fan Nation Network (part of Sports Illustrated). In addition to being a credentialed member of the Miami Dolphins press corps, Alain has covered three Super Bowls (for NFL.com, Football News and the Montreal Gazette), the annual NFL draft, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL Scouting Combine. During his almost 40 years in journalism, which began at the now-defunct Miami News, Alain has covered practically every sport at one time or another, from tennis to golf, baseball, basketball and everything in between. The career also included time as a copy editor, including work on several books such as "Still Perfect," an inside look at the Miami Dolphins' 1972 perfect season. A native of Montreal, Canada, whose first language is French, Alain grew up a huge hockey fan but soon developed a love for all sports, including NFL football. He has lived in South Florida since the 1980s.

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