Colts GM Chris Ballard reveals why trading Michael Pittman Jr. ‘sucks’

The Indianapolis Colts have already made some bold moves this offseason. Indy extended QB Daniel Jones and kept wide receiver Alec Pierce on a massive $116 million contract. But the Colts were forced to trade Michael Pittman Jr. to the Steelers to make the financials work. That transaction took a heavy toll on one Colts executive.

Colts general manager Chris Ballard told Kay Adams that he did not enjoy trading away the veteran wide receiver.

“I get close with our players… sitting in the background and making decisions without having a relationship, I can’t do that. I just can’t, it’s not who I am [or] how I grew up in this profession,” Ballard said on Thursday via Up & Adams. “Sometimes you’ve got people you care about and you have great respect for [but] you’ve got to make decisions that absolutely freaking suck. That’s one of them.”

Losing Pittman also stinks for the Colts on the actual football field. Pittman has been a reliable receiver in Indy since joining the NFL during the 2020 NFL Draft. He logged 80 receptions for 784 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in his final season with the Colts.

Ballard make it clear that he had a special relationship with Pittman built on honesty.

“My relationship with [Pittman] I would tell you is about as honest a GM-player relationship as you can have back and forth,” Ballard added. “Like we had some interesting talks through the years. So it was hard but he understood, he was a pro about it. He didn’t like it, but he understood.”

But Colts fans will be able to see Pittman once again during the 2026 regular season. The Steelers are already confirmed as one of the Colts’ opponents on the 2026 schedule.

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