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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The Kansas City Chiefs introduced longtime Packers executive John Dorsey as their new general manager Monday, turning over a team that was 2-14 to one of the men responsible for building Green Bay into a consistent winner.
Dorsey moves into the front office after the firing of Scott Pioli, who helped the Chiefs achieve one winning record in four tumultuous seasons. He will have final say over all personnel decisions, including the draft, and will report to Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt.
Dorsey played for the Packers and later was a scout and director of scouting while new Chiefs coach Andy Reid was an assistant in Green Bay. Dorsey left to spend a year in Seattle, but returned to the Packers and rose to director of football operations.
"This has been a six-day journey, and it's been awesome," said Dorsey, whose hiring was announced while the Packers were playing the 49ers in the NFC playoffs Saturday night.
"We would like to be consistently competitive in this division, this conference and ultimately the Super Bowl. That's why we're here, to do the job," Dorsey said. "I'm going to do everything within my God-given ability to make sure we have a competitive team in the NFL."
Hunt has moved quickly to restructure the Chiefs since the end of the season, when he dismissed coach Romeo Crennel and promised more changers were ahead. He flew to Philadelphia a couple days later and wooed Reid, who had just been dismissed by the Eagles. After a marathon interview, Hunt convinced Reid to try a fresh start in Kansas City.
Once his coach was in place, Hunt targeted Dorsey to fill the GM position.
Hunt interviewed Dorsey for about six hours last Tuesday, one day after Reid was introduced at Arrowhead Stadium. The discussions continued for several days before Dorsey, who had bypassed other GM openings in the past, finally decided to move into the hot seat in Kansas City.
"In his interview, although it went on for a while, he showed a high degree of enthusiasm the whole way," Hunt said, "which showed to me that Kansas City was a priority for him."
Dorsey said he spent an hour with the personnel staff Monday, and that his next order of business is to evaluate the current roster. He wants to meet with the coaching staff to discuss their philosophy, and then outline a plan for free agency and begin meeting about the NFL draft -- the Chiefs have the No. 1 pick for the first time.
The draft, of course, is where Dorsey burnished his reputation. He began his career as a college scout in Green Bay, and later rose to director of college scouting. During his years in Green Bay, Dorsey helped to scout and draft quarterback Aaron Rodgers, defensive tackle B.J. Raji, tight end Jermichael Finley, linebackers Clay Matthews and A.J. Hawk, and wide receivers Jordy Nelson, Greg Jennings and Randall Cobb.
Those players have played a role in two decades of success, including nine division titles, three conference championships and Super Bowl titles in 1996 and 2010.
"John has been a loyal member of the Packers family and the Green Bay community for more than half of his life," Packers GM Ted Thompson said in a statement. "The Chiefs have hired a good man, and John has earned this opportunity."
Dorsey didn't get into details about what the next few months will hold for the Chiefs, though there are several personnel decisions that must be made soon.
Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe and left tackle Branden Albert are among several key players who can become free agents, and could potentially be franchised. Other players will also be available on the free-agent market, though Dorsey warned about the flaws of building a team in that way.
"I like to be selective in free agency," he said. "I always believe you can still get value within that philosophy, and you can still acquire players."
The Chiefs are also in desperate need of an upgrade at quarterback, where Matt Cassel was benched last season and Brady Quinn fared little better.
Kansas City has only drafted one quarterback in the past six seasons -- Ricky Stanzi in the fifth round. The Chiefs also haven't picked a quarterback higher than the third round since 1992, and in the first round since choosing Todd Blackledge in '83.
"Any time when you begin to build a franchise, let's be real, the quarterback is a very important part," Dorsey said. "As you note the last couple weeks in the playoffs, the quarterback position is a very important position to the long-term success of the organization."
