The signing of Charvarius Ward to the Indianapolis Colts last week was a major win for Chris Ballard. A cornerback most recently with the San Francisco 49ers, Ward is a Super Bowl champion who has been selected to the Pro Bowl, and was Second Team All-Pro in 2023. He's a versatile, well-rounded CB who is brilliant on multiple fronts - he can handle man-to-man coverage, make interceptions, is a strong tackler, and does well in zone coverage, too. He's played in three Super Bowls and 17 playoff games, and he will undoubtedly be a huge asset to the Colts defense.
Ward seems to have left the 49ers on mostly good terms, explaining that he has been looking for opportunities to have a fresh start elsewhere after the death of his daughter. "I've got a lot of trauma in California," he said. "I had a lot of great times, but the worst thing that's ever happened to me, that's probably going to ever happen to me -- knock on wood -- happened in California. It can just bring up bad memories. Every time I get on a plane and come back to California, Santa Clara, San Jose, and show up here, it just brings up bad memories.
Ward (@itslilmooney) on Dallas (#Cowboys):
— Lawrence Owen (@Colts_Law) March 18, 2025
"I was strappin' all them boys. I thought I was making the team, but Dallas doesn't make a lot of good decisions." 🤣😂 pic.twitter.com/oVAvl7dJkz
"I go through that every day. I go home every night by myself because my girl, she doesn't want to come back to California because of what happened. So, it is hard being alone, and she's my strength right now. I need her, and so her not being able to be around me if I'm in California, it'd be tough."
Ward is getting his fresh start in Indianapolis, but he still remembers where he came from - and the team that didn't bother giving him a chance: the Dallas Cowboys.
Way back in 2018, Ward was an undrafted free agent who signed with the Dallas Cowboys. Though Ward said he performed well, the Cowboys chose to trade him to Kansas City... and the rest is history.
"You don' thave many opportunities as an undrafted free agent," Ward said. "Even going back to the Cowboys, I signed with them as an undrafted free agent in training camp. In OTAs, I was strapping them boys... I thought I was going to make the team in Dallas, but Dallas don't make a lot of good decisions, so they ended up trading me to Kansas City."
Ouch.
But, he said, that ended up being the best thing that could have happened for his career. Though his first game with the Chiefs wasn't great, he was able to rebound. "Every year since then I got better and better and better," he said, concluding, "Yeah, I did my thing. Glad I'm on the other side now though."