According to ESPN’s Stephen Holder, Indianapolis Colts assistant GM Ed Dodds will now assume overseeing the team’s personnel department as expected, in the aftermath of longtime GM Chris Ballard’s Monday firing:
That being said, Colts head coach Shane Steichen and his coaching staff will directly report to team ownership, meaning most likely, CEO
Carlie Irsay-Gordon in this instance.
Having served as Ballard’s ‘right hand man’ since 2018 as Colts assistant GM, Dodds has been consistently named a “hot name for future GM openings” on an annual basis.
He’s had a number of interviews with NFL teams with GM vacancies through past offseasons, even withdrawing from other teams’ interview processes because of the ownership fit and wanting to finish what he and Ballard initially started together in Indianapolis since 2017—where he began as the Colts senior personnel executive and scout from the Seattle Seahawks before being promoted by Ballard.
In the interim, despite his obvious loyalty and professional relationship with Ballard, this would seem like a great opportunity for him to get firsthand, hands on experience of what it’s like to be the top leader of a team’s football operations for the remainder of the 2026 campaign—even if he’s not the Colts GM going forward thereafter.
In my opinion, it would still make sense for the Colts to clean house entirely at year-end within their football operations department and get new leadership voices and a fresh perspective, which have been sorely needed.
