KANSAS CITY, Mo. –The Chiefs found their new general manager, and they did not need to look very far to find a familiar face. Brett Veach, the team’s co-director of player personnel, ascended to the role Monday, culminating an 18-day search following the departure of former GM John Dorsey.
The Kansas City Chiefs announced Brett Veach as the team’s new general manager on July 10, 2017.
The 39-year-old Veach followed head coach Andy Reid to Kansas City in 2013. Veach spent six seasons with the Eagles before joining the Chiefs as pro and college personnel analyst. He earned a promotion to co-director of player personnel before the 2015 season. He shared that role with Mike Borgonzi.
Team CEO Clark Hunt said Veach proved himself since his arrival in Kansas City.
“Brett has a sharp football mind, a tremendous work ethic and a keen eye for finding talent,” Hunt said in a statement. “Over the last four seasons he’s played a critical role in building our football team. I look forward to working with him to continue to build on the strong foundation we have in place.”
The statement from the organization also indicated Veach would report directly to Hunt, consistent with the owner’s philosophy since hiring Dorsey and Reid four years ago.
Veach expressed gratitude for the opportunity given to him by Hunt.
“Over the last four seasons, I’ve had the privilege to work alongside Andy Reid, John Dorsey and a great group of coaches and personnel staff,” Veach said in a statement. “Together, we built a strong foundation of players that have helped us sustain success on the field. I’m looking forward to continuing our progress as we head into 2017.”
The hiring of Veach ends a nearly three-week long search for a new general manager following the team’s separation from Dorsey. The NFL calendar likely delayed the search. The time between offseason training activities and the opening of training camp typically serves as a vacation and rest period for NFL executives.
The timing pales in comparison to the lightning speed in which the team’s transition took place following the 2012 season. The team announced the firing of former head coach Romeo Crennel Dec. 31, 2012. Hunt announced the hiring of Reid four days later, the same day he fired former general manager Scott Pioli. Dorsey joined the organization nine days later.
Veach shares close ties to Reid, and his promotion completes a triumvirate of former Eagles in the top leadership tier of the Chiefs organization.
Veach served as an assistant to Reid from 2007-09 before joining the Eagles scouting department. He served as a pro and college scout in 2010 and as southeast regional scout for the 2011-12 seasons.
In addition to the team’s head coach and new general manager, Chiefs president Mark Donovan spent six years with the Eagles as senior vice president of business operations before his arrival in Kansas City in 2009. Reid, Donovan and Veach all worked together in Philadelphia during the 2007-08 seasons.
First on Veach’s agenda — even before the team reports for training camp July 24 in St. Joseph — likely stands as finalizing a deal with first-round draft pick Patrick Mahomes. The No. 10 overall pick remains one of just seven first round picks yet to sign.
The team plans on holding a press conference introducing Veach as GM July 24 at the team’s training camp. That’s the same day rookies, quarterbacks and injured players can report to camp.
———-
Matt Derrick is the lead beat writer for ChiefsDigest.com. Use the contact page to reach him or find him on Twitter: @MattDerrick.
———-
