Brady Quinn called out Colts GM Chris Ballard on Fox broadcast

Jim Irsay still believes Chris Ballard is the right general manager for the Indianapolis Colts, but Brady Quinn sounds skeptical.

Quinn and play-by-play voice Jason Benetti were tasked with calling Sunday afternoon’s season finale between the Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars on Fox. With the 8-9 Colts now a decade removed from winning their last division title, Quinn had an interesting thought about what the problem might be.

“It’s been what, eight years? Well, longer than that since the Colts won the division, 10 years? Maybe Chris Ballard has been here for eight years…Is there a correlation there?” – Brady Quinn pic.twitter.com/5PbM5GsXoc

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 6, 2025

“Speaking of the last eight years, it’s been what, eight years? Well, longer than that since the Colts won the division, 10 years?” Quinn asked. “Maybe Chris Ballard has been here for eight years, is that right? Is there a correlation there?”

The owner doesn’t seem to think so, with Irsay penning a letter to Colts fans Sunday night to let them know he still believes in Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen despite their mounting division title drought. Quinn, however, didn’t let Ballard’s mediocrity go unnoticed. It was the type of blunt analysis fans might expect from Quinn on his daily radio show. Quinn citing a correlation Ballard and the Colts sustained mediocrity on a game broadcast may have been a bit more jarring, but it was completely appropriate.

The Colts have made the playoffs just twice in Ballard’s tenure, nabbing one postseason victory in 2018. Ballard has failed to replace Andrew Luck at quarterback, trying with Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan, Nick Foles, Gardner Minshew, Anthony Richardson and Joe Flacco.

Without much success on his resume or apparent direction for the future, it’s certainly fair to see a correlation between Ballard and the Colts’ lack of recent success. Yet Ballard is still being given a ninth year to fix the mess. Irsay might not have enjoyed the commentary by Quinn, but Colts fans certainly did.

[Fox]