INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts were on their way to a humiliating 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Nov. 6, and as owner Jim Irsay urgently sought answers, he turned to someone who wasn’t at the game, wasn’t on his coaching staff and wasn’t even in position to comment.
Amid one of the Colts’ worst offensive performances in years, Irsay grabbed his phone and dialed up Jeff Saturday.
“He was asking me what was going on,” Saturday later explained.
Saturday wasn’t watching the game, but by the end of that night, the former Colts All-Pro center went from prepping for his appearances as an ESPN television analyst the next day to mulling Irsay’s offer to coach the final eight games of the season.
At that point, Irsay had not discussed the Saturday move with anyone — including GM Chris Ballard. Even Irsay’s eldest daughter, Carlie Irsay-Gordon — a vice chair/owner like her two sisters, and someone who is deeply involved in all areas of the franchise’s operations — was said to be unaware of the plan until after coach Frank Reich was fired the next morning, according to multiple team sources.
Ballard responded with significant pushback to the prospect of hiring someone with no college or pro coaching experience. “This is unprecedented, and we’re putting him into a really tough situation here,” he recalled telling Irsay, to no avail.
Undeterred, Irsay moved forward. But the decision, once made public, did not produce the reaction he seemed to anticipate. Pundits characterized the choice of Saturday as unserious and unfair to better-prepared candidates. Irsay, usually beloved by his team’s fan base, was suddenly on the defensive.
“I’ve never hired a losing coach in my life,” he said on Nov. 8, during Saturday’s introductory news conference. “The last interim coach I hired became a Super Bowl-winning head coach — Bruce Arians.”
