From cheeseburger delivery man to architect of a dynasty: Chiefs GM Brett Veach keeps KC humming

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs coach Andy Reid first met Brett Veach after he'd been recommended for an internship with his Philadelphia Eagles.

One of Veach's many tasks? Running out for the occasional lunch order.

Cheeseburgers were common.

All these years later, Veach is still delivering the goods for Reid, only now as the general manager of a Chiefs franchise that is chasing an unprecedented third consecutive Super Bowl title. Veach is the one who Reid freely credits with rebuilding the roster each year, and whose collection of players will face the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night in New Orleans.

“You could see right from the get-go his energy and how smart he was,” Reid told The Associated Press. “Then his passion for the players side of it. Those guys that came in, I gave them the opportunity to either go personnel or to the football side, and he was so passionate about digging in with it and finding guys.”

Veach did his time as a coaching intern, spending most of four years in the role. He learned not only the nuances of identifying prospects — something Reid largely handled himself in Philly — but also what Big Red valued in players on his team.

That would become invaluable as the years went by.

Veach was promoted to a coaching assistant, then moved into a scouting role, and helped to identify DeSean Jackson, LeSean McCoy and Fletcher Cox, all players who contributed so greatly to the Eagles' success while Reid was the coach.

“All those guys, he’s throwing those guys on my desk saying, ‘You have to get these guys,’” Reid recalled with a smile. "He just had an eye and a knack for it and that hasn’t changed.”

That track record is why Reid brought Veach along with him to Kansas City in 2013, hiring the former Delaware wide receiver — and teammate of Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy — as a pro and college personnel analyst.

Two years later, Veach was promoted to co-director of player personnel. And when the Chiefs moved on from John Dorsey, they gave the general manager job to Veach, making him one of the youngest in the NFL at the time.

The final draft with Dorsey in charge became famous in large part because of Veach: He stood up in the draft room that night and lobbied — insisted, even — that Kansas City trade up to select a gunslinging quarterback from Texas Tech.

Veach had delivered Reid his franchise quarterback in Patrick Mahomes.

“With Brett, it starts early in the offseason, and what an amazing job he does in putting this team together,” Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt said. “It’s an amazing achievement to keep turning over the roster every year.”

Indeed, the Chiefs that won their first Super Bowl title in five decades in the 2019 season are much different than the Chiefs going for a historic three-peat this season. They have lavished massive contracts on Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce, defensive tackle Chris Jones and others, and yet they've managed to massage the salary cap in such a way as to keep plugging their biggest holes.

It might be signing wide receiver Marquise Brown to a club friendly contract. Or running back Kareem Hunt off the couch when nobody else wanted him. Or it might be through the draft, where Veach's hit rate on everyone from cornerback Trent McDuffie to pass rusher George Karlaftis to speedy wide receiver Xavier Worthy is virtually unmatched across the league.

“He and his crew there in the personnel department — he's done an exceptional job,” Reid said Tuesday. “He's done it since he's been in that position and no more than this year.”

Veach is too humble to take all the credit. But he acknowledges being part of a team effort that has kept Kansas City on top.

“It goes back to the leadership of Clark. Clark does a great job of keeping — I’m super aggressive and that can be dangerous. Having Clark’s leadership and guidance has been a blessing,” Veach said.

"It’s a great balance where he gives me the green light when he feels like it’s appropriate, but at the same time, we try to be smart and very decisive in what we do.

“At the same time,” Veach continued, "we have a good group here. We plan to be successful for a long time. We just have to be smart. It’s a delicate balance of being disciplined and aggressive. There is a fine balance, and it’s a complete group effort between my staff and Clark and the coaching staff.”

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