Welch: Jamaal Charles ‘felt disrespected’ by way Chiefs cut him

Following the Chiefs dismissing general manager John Dorsey shortly after head coach Andy Reid received a five-year extension, Kansas City sports talk host Mike Welch speculated that the executive may have earned his walking papers in part by disrespecting outgoing players — including running back Jamaal Charles.

Welch, who hosts the morning drive on 610 Sports Radio in Kansas City, told 104.3 The Fan’s “The Drive” on Thursday that he’s heard from in inside the organization the way Dorsey handled the release of wide receiver Jeremy Maclin upset Reid and owner Clark Hunt.

“One, Andy Reid was upset because he wasn’t talked to about the Jeremy Maclin decision,” Welch said. “In fact, after it happened, he even told us you have to talk to Dorsey about that.”

Welch also added that Hunt was “furious” after find out Maclin was “cut via voicemail,” saying the 10-year veteran wide receiver “needs to be treated with the respect he deserves.”

Maclin, who followed Reid to Kansas City from the Philadelphia Eagles, signed with the Baltimore Ravens last week. The Chiefs saved $12 million by releasing the wideout.

“There were a lot of levels of anger about the way the Jeremy Maclin thing was handled all the way up to the top,” Welch said.

Welch said the displeasure in Dorsey’s offseason dealings could have gone back as far as when Kansas City released long-time running back Jamaal Charles.

The Chiefs released Charles in February after nine seasons with the team. ESPN’s Adam Schefter said in May, just before the Broncos acquired the All-Pro, that the team did want to bring Charles back, but not at the salary he was projected to make coupled with his injury history.

Earlier this month, Denver 7 Broncos Insider Troy Renck said Charles was “eager to show Kansas City they were wrong,” which Welch said may stem from how the running back was shown the door.

“I think Jamaal would have understood if they came back to him and said, ‘Hey, we don’t want to pay you the $8 million that you’re owed. Can we restructure? Can we do something?’” Welch said.

“But from Jamaal Charles’ perspective, he was not given a chance to come back when he felt like he was healthy last season, and he was cut in a way that he felt disrespected.”

A disgruntled former employee is one thing, Welch said, but several is a pattern, one in which the Chiefs organization couldn’t live with.

“When you start seeing multiple employees with the same kind of story, where they feel disrespected, that starts to look very real and it gets the word around the league that, hey, this organization doesn’t treat their players the way they’re supposed to, especially on the way out,” Welch said.

“You can’t have that if you’re Andy Reid or your Clark Hunt. I think that’s the prevailing reason, in a list of reasons, why John Dorsey is gone.”

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.