National Football League

Reid stays optimistic following Chiefs' disappointing end to 2014

Published Dec. 29, 2014 2:37 p.m. ET

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- As proud as Chiefs coach Andy Reid was of his troops for beating San Diego on Sunday, he knows as well as anyone that the NFL is a bottom-line business.

Teams, coaches and players are judged on whether they get to the playoffs and how much they win once there.

From that standpoint, 2014 was a failure for Reid and the Chiefs.

"We're disappointed right now," Reid said Monday. "You should be disappointed. If you're not, there's a problem."

Still, Reid wasn't slighting the fact his team finished with another winning record at 9-7. And it should be pointed out that Reid's 20 wins in two seasons with Kansas City are the most by any Chiefs head coach during his first two seasons on the job.

"And I love the fact that we had a tough schedule this year," Reid said. "We were able to test ourselves.

"That will pay off down the road in terms of our program. We're a young team that can build on that."

Of course, given the option, Reid certainly would have liked his young group -- the Chiefs were the second-youngest team in the NFL when the season started -- to learn as they were experiencing a trip to the playoffs.

"It's a bit of an empty feeling not going to the playoffs," Reid said. "You have to be able to take care of business, especially in the second half of the season. Going .500 (like we did) isn't going to cut it."

Most of the issues cut close to home for Reid, an offensive-minded head coach. His offense simply became stagnant down the stretch.

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"We need to get better at big plays and chunk plays," Reid said.

And while much of the blame could be placed on quarterback Alex Smith and his conservative, check-down approach, Reid wasn't going there.

"I think Alex had a really good year," Reid said. "I think he made more progress this year than last year.

"I think his eyes are pretty good (looking for big plays). He'll look downfield. But he can also pull his eyes down, too, and look for a hole to run in."

Smith's supporters will point to the fact the Chiefs gave up 49 sacks, seventh most in the NFL, and in general started a weak offensive line.

Reid, naturally, wasn't going to rip his O-line, either.

"I wouldn't focus on just the sacks because they can be distributed (to several sources)," Reid said. "You look at a sack and you could go a few different directions (for who to blame)."

In any event, Reid is eager to start his offseason program, which includes evaluation and ways he and general manager John Dorsey can improve the roster.

"Like I said, we're a young team," Reid said. "A lot of young guys got experience that they wouldn't have gotten if not for injuries. So that's a positive to build on for next year."

You can follow Jeffrey Flanagan on Twitter at @jflanagankc or email him at jeffreyflanagan6@gmail.com.