Irsay-Gordon on the property of the colts: “We take it very seriously”

Indianapolis – Carlie Irsay -Gordon opened the new era of the property of the Indianapolis colts with a timely joke on Tuesday, precipitating that she and her sisters planned to present herself 30 minutes late to meet journalists in honor of their late father, Jim Irsay, who moved to the pace of his own drum.

But it did not take long to become obvious that, for the three girls of Irsay – who took control of the colts this week after the death of their father last month – their team stewardship is not a question of laughing.

“It is our company and we take it very seriously,” said Irsay-Gordon, CEO and the team’s principal owner, during a 30-minute joint press conference with its sisters. “As we have discussed, we know that we have things to repair. But I think we are doubled and we are going to work tirelessly to make sure we continue the inheritance.”

When he was asked questions specifically about the director general Chris Ballard and coach Shane Steichen, whose fate Jim Irsay carefully considered before keeping the pair in January, Irsay-Gordon sent a clear message.

“Chris and Shane know that they have things they have to repair,” she said. “We talked about not microgestion, but also, we have a standard here and it was not good enough. Winning is great. But I will even go further and say that we are really determined to be the best and if we are the best, we will win games. And I think Chris and Shane are totally able to do it and we are convinced that they can.”

The colts missed the playoffs last season for the fourth consecutive season and have not won AFC South since 2014 – the only division team did not win the division in this time.

Irsay-Gordon said that she was not ready to say if the future Ballard and Steichen are linked together (Ballard enters his ninth season, Steichen his third), but that they remain good partners.

“They respect each other and trust each other and we feel really lucky to have this kind of dynamic,” she said.

While their father was one of the most public owners in the NFL and drew the attention that came with work, his daughters – Irsay -Gordon, Casey Foyt and Kalen Jackson – worked for many capacities in the background for many years.

But, according to Jackson, they were parts to most of the major decisions that the franchise has made in recent years, part of their father’s deliberate efforts to prepare them for the day they have taken over.

“We were exposed to all areas you might think,” said Jackson, owner and brand director. “He never cut us from any zone of any kind. And I think it will help us in this transition.”

The sisters said that no decision had been made about the structure of the team management in the future. But Irsay-Gordon said that the head of the farm Pete Ward, the long-standing lieutenant of their father and colt employee since 1982, has promised to stay in the foreseeable future.

The property shared between the brothers and sisters raises questions about how they reach a consensus when there is a disagreement on sensitive issues. But the sisters said they had already sailed such scenarios during their years of work together.

“We are sisters, but we are also business partners,” said Jackson. “And they always say that your relationships with your brothers and sisters are probably the most important in life. These are the people with whom you are most. The people who will probably stay with you the longest. And we know our faults and our strengths and our weaknesses probably better than the most.

Among the imminent decisions that could require that the sisters reach a consensus is the future of the quarterrier Anthony Richardson, which remains away for a second week after having aggravated his right shoulder surgically repaired two weeks ago.

Richardson, the fourth overall choice of the team in 2023 which had a hard time during its first two seasons, is in a battle with the veteran Daniel Jones for the departure post this fall.

“We wrote Anthony for a reason and we believe in him,” said Irsay-Gordon. “It is incredibly talented and sometimes, when you repel players, they have difficult departures, they have injuries, they have the things they have to go through. But I think it is too early to say.

“I think he has all the potential of the world and if he wants to prove it, he can. He will do so if he wants.”

While the sisters stressed that they planned to hire reliable staff and let them work, Irsay-Gordon also recognized his own style of practical leadership.

She, for example, carries a helmet during the matches to listen to the calculations and the exchanges between the coaches. That, she said, helps her to interpret what’s going on and allows her to precisely check what she says.

“I need to be able to say:” Is this person full of BS? Do they even know what they are talking about? “” She said.

Irsay-Gordon, who, unlike his father in recent years, has worked full days in the team’s facilities, added that his counterparts around the league could want to follow suit.

“I would suggest that any other person who has to pay coaches and millions of dollars and millions of dollars,” she said. “It helps you make a cheaper error, potentially.”