The Indianapolis Colts announced Monday, Oct. 19, that they had relieved Chris Ballard of his duties as general manager. Ballard was in his 10th season leading the team, ESPN reported. The announcement followed a home loss to the previously winless Tennessee Titans in which Indianapolis squandered a 13-point halftime lead. The Colts were 2-4, according to ESPN. Cameron Wolfe described the start as sloppy and the loss as a collapse.
Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon said the team’s standard was to compete for championships and that she believed a change in leadership was necessary to meet it, as quoted by ESPN’s Stephen Holder. She called the in-season timing “a deliberate decision,” saying waiting would delay work that needed to begin. She also promised “a thorough search for our next general manager.”
Holder reported that the Colts went 72-82-1 under Ballard, made the playoffs twice, in 2018 and 2020, and won one playoff game. They did not win the AFC South during his tenure, a point MySportsUpdate also highlighted. Reacting to the dismissal, commentator Jake Arthur called it “a monumental, but necessary move.”
For the rest of the season, assistant GM Ed Dodds will lead the Colts’ personnel department, . Pelissero said coach Shane Steichen and the football staff outside personnel will report to ownership. . Dodds’ reported assignment covers the rest of the season; the team has said it will search for a permanent general manager.
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