By Brendan Lunga
Medill Reports
NEW ORLEANS – Justin Reid will be the starting safety for the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl on Sunday. It’s not a bad outcome for someone who never planned on playing football.
One day, as a first-year at Dutchtown High School in Geismar, Louisiana, Reid sat down in science class. At the time, soccer was his lone focus. Summer training for football had long passed. His football days appeared to have ended unremarkably in middle school.
But on that day, longtime Dutchtown head football coach Benny Saia pulled Reid out of class. Saia did everything he could to convince Reid to give football a shot. He reminded Reid his older brother, Eric, was playing as a safety at LSU.
Saia’s plea worked, changing the trajectory of Reid’s life.
“He convinced me to come out and play, and I did,” Reid said. “And I guess you can say it worked out pretty well.”
He will line up at safety on Sunday in the Superdome as the Chiefs pursue a history-making third consecutive Super Bowl. After signing with the Chiefs in March 2022, the defensive back has played an integral role on one of the most successful dynasties in NFL history.
Reid, a Louisiana native, said he has depended on his hometown community and family throughout his entire football career.
“I could not possibly have done any of what I’ve done by myself,” Reid said.
Playing football at Dutchtown, Reid leaned on the people who came before him.
He said Louisiana players pride themselves on athleticism and toughness. He watched as his brother, and other future NFL players such as Landon Collins and Eddie Lacy, found success under Saia at Dutchtown. In total, 71 different players from Louisiana played an NFL game in 2024.
The hometown success stories motivated him. He wanted to match their intensity on the field. And most importantly, he wanted to match their achievements.
“You just try to be another one of those guys to come out of this state,” Reid said, “and do something really impactful in the league.”
After three years at Stanford, Reid declared for the 2018 NFL draft and was selected in the third round. He began his career in Houston, but when the opportunity presented itself in free agency in 2022, Reid signed with the Chiefs.
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said it took Reid some time to get used to the system. He said Reid had some growing pains early on.
But by midseason in 2022, Spagnuolo said he knew Reid was as good as advertised. He said Reid’s intelligence and physicality allowed the defense to reach another level.
“Once we figured out what he did best,” Spagnuolo said, “we slotted him in there, and he just kind of took off.”
The move was a success, to say the least. In Reid’s three years with the Chiefs, the team has yet to lose a postseason game.
Reid’s role has quickly evolved from a new face in the locker room to a veteran. He’s become a mentor to younger players like safety Bryan Cook, who joined the Chiefs as a rookie alongside Reid in 2022.
“Him being who he is showed us that we can be more of ourselves as well,” Cook said.
Now competing in his third Super Bowl with the Chiefs, Reid said every Super Bowl is special. But this time around, his support system will be one person larger. Reid comes to New Orleans not only as a native of the state, but also as a first-time father. Just six days before the Chiefs took on the Buffalo Bills in the AFC championship game, Reid and his girlfriend, Marissa Rand, welcomed a daughter, whom they named Cielle.
Reid said balancing being a father and playing in the Super Bowl has been less difficult than he expected because he’s experienced Super Bowl week before. As he prepares for the big game in New Orleans, Rand and her mom are at home with the baby.
“They’re taking care of her,” Reid said, “and I’m here taking care of business.”
Growing up and playing football in Louisiana, Reid said kids only talk about two things: playing in the Superdome and playing in the Super Bowl.
He expects close to 30 family members to be in the Superdome on Sunday. He said one advantage of playing in his home state is that he saved money on family travel this time around.
But a large supporting cast means a lot of tickets. The “get-in” price initially started at more than $5,000. And he didn’t get any discounts.
“It makes me cringe to say out loud how much I spent on these tickets,” Reid said.
But any buyer’s remorse will be cured if Reid hoists his third Lombardi Trophy on Sunday.
More than a decade after being pulled out of science class at Dutchtown High School 63 miles away from the Superdome, Reid will have the opportunity to make history with his hometown community and family watching.
Brendan Lunga is a sports media graduate student at Medill. You can follow him on Twitter/X at @brendan_lunga18.
