Andy Reid’s Shield Hat Is Actually Awesome

If you watched the return of NFL football last night or spent any time on Twitter, you know about all the hullabaloo surrounding Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid’s preferred coronavirus protection measures. All coaches are required to wear a mask this season, but Andy Reid took it to the next level, appending a face shield to his hat so that he looks more like a welder than a bank robber:

Unfortunately for him, do to the weather conditions in Missouri, the Super Bowl winning coach found his ersatz visor fogging up repeatedly, making him the butt of many an Internet joke. A common theme was that this somehow proved that everyone should wear a traditional mask.

I’m not going to argue about the science of condensation or how to prevent that in the future. It may be entirely true that in rainy and humid weather like last night, a face mask is more practical. On the other hand, one of the primary jobs of a head coach on game night is communicating to his players, and anyone who has tried to eat at Subway this pandemic know that it is nearly impossible to understand people when they are wearing their mask, which is how you end up with unwanted mayo on your sandwich.

When you are wearing a shield hat like Andy Reid, you have a way better chance of people understanding what you are saying. Furthermore, contrary to what the Twitterati says, when you wear a shield hat you look way more prepared to fend off the virus. When you wear a mask, you look like you picked up whatever spare cloth was lying around in front of you and stuck it in front of your face. (It should also be noted that it is significantly easier to clean the face shields than it is a cloth mask, which nobody washes often enough).

I don’t know if the NFL Shop is planning on selling team hats with face shields attached, but if they are, I would buy one immediately. In the meantime, I will likely have to get one of these and put it on myself:

Retail Sign Systems Kids Baseball Cap, 2-8 Years Boys & Girls, Outdoor Dustproof Hat –$12.99