ChiefsPlanet - View Single Post - Chiefs Clark Hunt, Brett Veach & Andy Reid press conference

**DaneMcCloud** · 07-27-2017, 10:11 AM

https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/07/27/ho...son-tom-savage

4. Why Brett Veach in Kansas City? The Chiefs finally introduced their internal GM hire this week, ushering in the man most (rightly) believed was the front-runner for the job from the start and closing the book on a strange month for the team. Without question, Veach’s relationship with coach Andy Reid, and his experience evaluating players to fit Reid’s programs both in K.C. and Philly, were a big part of this. But one interesting aspect of the process was raised to me this week—Veach had to overcome that too, when he interviewed with CEO Clark Hunt. We’ve seen these go the other way in the past, where a fait accompli internal hire winds up losing out on the post, and most often it’s because the team knows the person too well.

What does that mean? Well, if you know someone intimately as a lieutenant, it can be hard to envision that person as a general, moreso than it might be to have that same vision for a guy you’re meeting for the first time and is presenting himself as an executive. Veach had to get Hunt to see him in a different light, and he was able to display that, as one Chiefs staffer said, “he could button up and be the guy.”

As for what Veach brings to the table, outside of his familiarity with Reid, his passion for football was one plus, as Hunt saw it. Another was how Veach saw players. There is a group of four college players, in fact, that Veach raised in meetings over the last couple years a season ahead of their draft years, before they were on many NFL radars. And each of those four guys wound up hitting. That showed those there that he could see potential early in guys, which should serve him in putting a roster together. When I asked Colts GM Chris Ballard, who worked with Veach the past four years, about him earlier this week, Ballard affirmed all that to me: “Love Veach. Relentless worker, very good eye for talent. I believe in him.”

There are challenges here, of course. The first one, and this goes for a lot of guys who came up as road scouts (Veach did, as did his predecessor John Dorsey), will be managing people in the office on a day-to-day basis. The second one, which every new GM faces, is the learning curve in actually being the triggerman. And yes, this is the way most saw it playing out. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t reason to believe that it was simply the right way to go from the start.

07-27-2017, 10:11 AM	#437
DaneMcCloud Supporter DaneMcCloud's Avatar Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Hollywood, CA	https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/07/27/ho...son-tom-savage 4. Why Brett Veach in Kansas City? The Chiefs finally introduced their internal GM hire this week, ushering in the man most (rightly) believed was the front-runner for the job from the start and closing the book on a strange month for the team. Without question, Veach’s relationship with coach Andy Reid, and his experience evaluating players to fit Reid’s programs both in K.C. and Philly, were a big part of this. But one interesting aspect of the process was raised to me this week—Veach had to overcome that too, when he interviewed with CEO Clark Hunt. We’ve seen these go the other way in the past, where a fait accompli internal hire winds up losing out on the post, and most often it’s because the team knows the person too well. What does that mean? Well, if you know someone intimately as a lieutenant, it can be hard to envision that person as a general, moreso than it might be to have that same vision for a guy you’re meeting for the first time and is presenting himself as an executive. Veach had to get Hunt to see him in a different light, and he was able to display that, as one Chiefs staffer said, “he could button up and be the guy.” As for what Veach brings to the table, outside of his familiarity with Reid, his passion for football was one plus, as Hunt saw it. Another was how Veach saw players. There is a group of four college players, in fact, that Veach raised in meetings over the last couple years a season ahead of their draft years, before they were on many NFL radars. And each of those four guys wound up hitting. That showed those there that he could see potential early in guys, which should serve him in putting a roster together. When I asked Colts GM Chris Ballard, who worked with Veach the past four years, about him earlier this week, Ballard affirmed all that to me: “Love Veach. Relentless worker, very good eye for talent. I believe in him.” There are challenges here, of course. The first one, and this goes for a lot of guys who came up as road scouts (Veach did, as did his predecessor John Dorsey), will be managing people in the office on a day-to-day basis. The second one, which every new GM faces, is the learning curve in actually being the triggerman. And yes, this is the way most saw it playing out. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t reason to believe that it was simply the right way to go from the start.
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