The Kansas City Chiefs lost director of football operations Chris Ballard to the Indianapolis Colts, who announced him as their new GM over the weekend. We don’t get a peek into the front office often so I can’t tell you I know how much he does other than a few anecdotes.
The one you all may remember is that back in April 2015 before the draft it was Ballard who went to Oakland to vet Marcus Peters and his family. He ended up being a great pick so Ballard has to get some of the credit.
Additionally, Ballard was the top name on most of the GM candidate lists in the offseason this year. So, yeah, this should be a hit to the front office.
What’s the bigger long-term concern, I think, is the future of GM John Dorsey. He hasn’t done anything to squash those rumors about him and the Packers and I don’t think folks are just making that up. There seems to be something there. (By the way, I believe Dorsey is going to talk to the media sometime soon. Hopefully we clear it up there)
Because there seems to be something there, having Ballard, clearly a respected guy, in your front office was comforting. If Dorsey did leave, the cupboard isn’t completely bare. I like the operation the Chiefs have now. It seems to be really smooth. Ballard would be the least disruption to that.
Now Ballard is gone. It may be another year before we figure out how this really impacts the Chiefs, both with a full season of free agents and draft picks and figuring out Dorsey’s future beyond this season.