The Colts are 2-4 after a 26-20 home loss to the previously winless Titans, and Chris Ballard is out. The Colts fired general manager Chris Ballard on Monday, the morning after that loss.
Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon decided waiting any longer was the bigger risk. The loss dropped Indianapolis to 2-4, according to FOX59.
Ballard had run the franchise since 2017. He was in the final year of his contract. ESPN reports he was widely understood to be in a make-or-break season. The Chris Ballard fired news was the first major leadership move of the 2026 NFL season.
What the Colts owner said about the Ballard firing
Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon did not hide behind vague language. “Our standard is to compete for championships, and I believe a change in leadership is necessary to meet that standard,” she said in the team’s statement.
She also explained the timing. “Making this change during the season was a deliberate decision. Waiting would only delay the important work that needs to begin now.” Translation: why sit through another losing year just to fire the same man in January?
She added a line aimed at the locker room. “This decision does not change our goals for the season.”
Whether the players believe that is another question.
Ballard’s record before the Colts GM was fired
The numbers did him no favors. Ballard went 72-82-1 in the regular season and 1-2 in the playoffs, per WRTV. IndyStar notes he produced only two playoff berths and no AFC South titles in a decade. (That’s a lot of Januaries spent watching other people’s games.)
The Colts have not made the playoffs since the 2020 season. It is a long stretch for a franchise that hired Ballard to build a roster “talented from 1 to 53” around Andrew Luck. Luck retired suddenly before the 2019 season, and the plan never fully recovered.
Ballard did get a five-year extension in 2021. Back then, that looked like a vote of confidence. Five years later, the confidence has run out.
The quarterback problem behind the Chris Ballard firing
If one position explains the exit, it is quarterback. FOX59 ties the story to Anthony Richardson not working out. Ballard then signed Daniel Jones to a two-year, $88 million deal in 2025. Bleacher Report says Jones has regressed since returning from a major Achilles injury, which he suffered last December. The sources we reviewed do not say whether Jones remains the starter.
IndyStar’s headline pins the Ballard firing on failures at quarterback and pass rush, plus an offseason that did not fix them. That is the paper’s analysis rather than an official reason, but it matches what fans were shouting. They chanted “Fire Ballard” during Sunday’s game, per ESPN.
Quarterback chaos is not unique to Indianapolis. Around the league, the latest NFL quarterback rankings show how fast a franchise can rise or sink on one position.
The losing streak that sealed Ballard’s exit
The Titans game made it worse. The Big Lead says Indianapolis outgained Tennessee by more than 200 yards and still lost. The Colts also blew a two-score second-half lead.
Losing to a winless team at home is the kind of loss owners do not forget.
It also was not the first warning sign. The Colts lost seven straight games to end 2025. After back-to-back 8-9 seasons, Irsay-Gordon had promised changes if results did not improve. She kept Ballard and the coaching staff anyway in January. Their sense of urgency, she said, “has never been higher.” Six games into 2026, she ran out of patience.
Here’s the thing: what happens after Ballard is out as Colts GM
The real question for fans is who is in charge next. Assistant GM Ed Dodds is in the building, but no interim or permanent successor has been announced. Irsay-Gordon says the team will run a “thorough search” and “take the time necessary” to find the right leader. She gave no timeline.
Then there is head coach Shane Steichen. He was hired in 2023 and now coaches without the GM who brought him in. The owner has not said whether his job is safe or in danger. CBS Sports notes the pressure on him and his staff is mounting.
On the field, the Colts sit two games behind first-place Jacksonville in the AFC South. The season is not over. Still, fixing a roster mid-year, with no GM, is a tall order. Even the Eagles, who face a brutal stretch at 2-3, have a front office in place.
