The Colts decided they’d seen enough.
Less than 24 hours after Sunday’s stunning collapse against the previously winless Titans, Indianapolis fired general manager Chris Ballard on Monday and ended his decade in charge. Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon announced the move in a team statement, saying a “ change in leadership is necessary” for a franchise whose standard is competing for championships. Indianapolis fell 26-20 at home, slipped to 2-4, and has not named an interim replacement.
Irsay-Gordon said the timing was intentional. In her view, waiting would only push back work that needs to begin immediately, and the change does not alter the team’s goals for this season.
Sunday’s game made the decision easier to understand. The Colts went into halftime up 13-0, owned a huge edge in yardage at 399 to 186 and controlled the ball for more than 38 minutes.
None of it mattered. Three turnovers, a blocked punt returned for a touchdown and two late fourth-down stops gave Tennessee its first win of the season.
Afterward, DeForest Buckner put the mood in the locker room into blunt terms, saying he was tired of the “ same song and dance every year.” For a veteran who has watched too many Colts seasons fade the same way, it landed hard.
Ownership had already signaled Ballard was on thin ice. After the 2025 team opened 8-2 and then dropped its final seven games, Irsay-Gordon kept Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen but made it clear the margin for error was small. One ugly October loss was enough to trigger the move.
Ballard’s run began in 2017 with a plan to build through the draft, and for stretches, it worked. Quenton Nelson, Shaquille Leonard and Jonathan Taylor all became All-Pros under his watch.
What never got solved was quarterback. After Andrew Luck’s sudden retirement in 2019, the Colts cycled through Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan and Gardner Minshew.
Ballard’s answer was to spend the No. 4 pick in 2023 on Anthony Richardson, but that bet didn’t pay off. Daniel Jones, brought back this offseason while rehabbing a torn Achilles, ended up as the bridge to nowhere.
Ballard leaves with a 72-82-1 regular-season record, two playoff appearances and one postseason victory, which came in January 2019. His last big move was also his boldest: he sent two first-round picks to the Jets for cornerback Sauce Gardner last November, a win-now swing that now leaves his replacement without a 2027 first-rounder.
Steichen stays in place for now, but that arrangement may not last long. New general managers usually want their own head coach, which gives the remaining 11 games the feel of an extended interview.
Assistant general manager Ed Dodds, who arrived with Ballard in 2017 and has interviewed for GM jobs elsewhere, is the obvious internal candidate. Irsay-Gordon said the search will be thorough, though outside candidates will notice the presence of Taylor and Gardner on the roster.
The Colts head to Minnesota next. Another loss would only push the franchise deeper into reset territory.
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The timing matters because this was never just about one bad week. Indianapolis is sitting at 2-4 after a humiliating loss to the previously winless Titans, and the move invites all the usual questions about where the franchise goes next and how quickly it can stabilize. For a team that came into the year needing better results, this is the kind of decision that can reshape everything that follows. [Read more 🡒]
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After the loss to Tennessee, Shane Steichen spent his time talking less about the scoreboard and more about the habits that have put the Colts in a 2-4 hole. His message was centered on accountability and urgency, with the coach stressing that the only way forward is for everyone in the building to buy in and focus on the things they can actually control.
The schedule does not offer much room to breathe, either. Indianapolis is heading into a difficult stretch with road trips looming against Minnesota and Jacksonville, and those games will go a long way toward showing whether this team can steady itself or keep sliding deeper into the kind of season that quickly starts to define itself. [Read more 🡒]