GM John Dorsey and Head Coach Andy Reid in Contract Negotiations

GM John Dorsey and Head Coach Andy Reid

In Contract Negotiations

Jason Seibel

Yesterday, as the Kansas City Chiefs organization and all of their fans anxiously awaited the outcome of the contest pitting the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Miami Dolphins, news broke from “the NFL insider” Ian Rapport indicating that general manager John Dorsey is a candidate for the Green Packers’ front office.

Right around the same time, ESPN “football know-it-all” Adam Schefter dropped a nugget regarding head coach Andy Reid’s contract extension as well.

Both of these stories broke at very odd times, considering the Chiefs are now preparing for the divisional round opponent in the Steelers, and obviously don’t need the distractions that some of this can cause. While I’m sure the players aren’t “in the weeds” in regards to their general manager’s contract, it could be a bit distracting to have this news surrounding the team heading into the most important game to be played in Arrowhead since a guy named Joe Montana called the 816 area code home.

But digging deeper into the story, the Andy Reid piece is merely an aside. When Reid arrived in the Fountain City prior to the 2013 season, he signed a five-year deal. That contract won’t run out until after the end of next season, which is why the Chiefs’ organization will lock up his extension in the offseason. There’s nothing to see here, so move along. Andy seems to love it here, the fans love him–besides a couple of idiots who wanted him fired after the team lost to the Tennessee Titans and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers–and the team really responds to his “player’s coach” style of leadership. Plus, by looking at the jolly fellow in red, he appears to love some barbecue, so he’s probably not going to give that up either. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Chiefs’ president Mark Donovan doesn’t use that a bargaining chip.

Now the Dorsey news, on the other hand, is a bit more disconcerting. 

Even though Dorsey called the Chiefs GM position his “dream job” in an interview shortly after taking over the reigns from the ousted Scott Pioli, he does have strong ties to Green Bay. Not only did Dorsey play for the Packers in the 80’s, but he learned his craft of scouting players there as well. Despite the fact that Dorsey’s wife is from Kansas City — and if mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy — depending on the level of control the Packers organization was willing to give him, he could take the job.

But that’s where that little thread ends, because it just doesn’t make any sense. Unless it comes down to money. He has full control of the personnel in Kansas City. It’s not like Reid is a Chip Kelly or Bill Belechick type of coach who is jockeying for position in regards to controlling the roster. In fact, Reid — who did have full control of personnel and coaching decisions during his later years in Philadelphia with the Eagles — has repeatedly said he enjoys only being a football coach in this capacity.

But then, there’s the strange case of Chris Ballard, who is the Chiefs’ Director of Player Personnel, and essentially Dorsey’s second-in-command. Many have speculated that Ballard would leave the Chiefs at some point for a GM gig of his own. According to an article posted by Pro Football Talk for NBC Sports, the Chiefs blocked Ballard from interviewing with the San Francisco 49ers who was placing all their faith in landing him as their new GM.

Why would the Chiefs not allow Ballard to interview? Do they know something about the Dorsey situation they’re not letting on? Would he be in line to replace Dorsey, should he make the move back north to Green Bay?

While Dorsey has hit some serious home runs in the last four drafts — Eric Fisher, Dee Ford, Marcus Peters, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones, Tyreek Hill and others — as well as uncovered countless gems — Terrance Mitchell being the first who comes to mind, he didn’t do it all himself. Dorsey has a great team of scouts around him, and that starts with Ballard.

With that all being said, we know less about the situation now than we did yesterday. At the end of the day, though, while Dorsey going to Green Bay would be a huge blow to the Chiefs, it wouldn’t signal the end of the world because there would be someone there to immediately take his place. 

Of course, this all could be just a bunch of news stories set to distract the team from the real goal, which is bringing home the Lamar Hunt Trophy and then the Lombardi Trophy to where it belongs. The confines of Arrowhead Stadium. I guess we’ll find out.