“I Was at a Crossroads”: Matt Nagy Reflects on Leaving Real Estate to Join Andy Reid’s Philadelphia Eagles in 2010

Before winning two Super Bowls with the Kansas City Chiefs, Matt Nagy had to make a life-changing decision—leave his real estate job to pursue a career in the NFL. The Chiefs Offensive Coordinator opened up about the “crossroads” he faced in 2010 when he received a call from Brett Veach about joining the Eagles’ offseason camp.

At the time, Nagy had a stable career in real estate. Reflecting on that moment, he admitted that looking back at his high school coaching days eventually helped him choose football over real estate.

“You know what I was at a crossroads. I can remember specifically sitting in a model home selling real estate. Basically Monday through Thursday, and weekends got busy with open houses. I remember coaching in high school, knowing that I enjoyed it and I liked it a lot. I liked real estate, but I didn’t love it,” he told the Kansas City Chiefs YouTube channel.

Understandably, the decision wasn’t easy, but Nagy found his answer through a piece of advice from one of his Arena League coaches—the 5 percent rule. It changed his perspective and helped him pick the football job over real estate.

“I always remember one of my coaches in the arena league who said, ‘You want to be a part of that 5 percent rule,’ which he went by 5% of America loves their job, 95% of America doesn’t love their job—be the 5 percent. For me, I was in that crossroads where I was in that 95 percent. I liked selling real estate. I didn’t love it. And then I get that phone call from Coach Reid in 2010, offering me an entry-level job as an assistant coach for the Eagles. It wasn’t for very much money, but I came every day to work, and I loved every single day of it.”

Meanwhile, Nagy also reflected on the invaluable experiences he gained from working with Sean McDermott, Doug Pederson, and Andy Reid. According to Nagy, the “Secretariat work” with the Eagles helped him learn the ins and outs of coaching and offense.

“I learned so much. It was invaluable. As a quality control coach in Philadelphia for three years, a couple of those under Doug Pederson as the quarterback coach, I really got to learn what it was to understand the X’s and O’s of football. I was doing a lot of secretarial work, typing in playcalling sheets for Sean McDermott, who was the defensive coordinator for Reid. And then we got fired in 2012 from Philadelphia.”

Losing a job was indeed a tough phase for Nagy, especially with four children to support. But once again, Reid came through for him, offering him a quarterback coach job with the Chiefs in 2013. Notably, Nagy thrived in Kansas City before eventually becoming the head coach for the Chicago Bears (2018-2021).

In 2022, he returned to Reid and the Chiefs, where he was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2023 to support their three-pear mission. Now, looking back, Nagy has no regrets about leaving his real estate job.