Did Jonathan Taylor’s meeting with Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay produce a happy result? No. Not unless you wanted Taylor to request a trade, anyway.
It did, however, produce an all-time quote from Irsay.
Irsay did speak about Taylor, but in an incredibly bizarre manner. He brought up — among other things — his own mortality.
“If I die tonight and Jonathan Taylor is out of the league, no one’s gonna miss us,” Irsay said, per James Boyd, The Athletic. “The league goes on. We know that. The National Football (League) rolls on. It doesn’t matter who comes and who goes, and it’s a privilege to be a part of it.”
#Colts owner Jim Irsay: “If I die tonight and Jonathan Taylor is out of the league, no one’s gonna miss us. The league goes on. We know that. The National Football (League) rolls on. It doesn’t matter who comes and who goes, and it’s a privilege to be a part of it.”
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) July 30, 2023
Saturday’s trade request wasn’t particularly surprising. Taylor has been one of several running backs vocal about their perceived mistreatment in contract negotiations. Irsay has also spoken out against “bad faith” negotiations. So, tensions had certainly been building for several days, if not longer.
But this response definitely left people in the NFL world confused.
This can’t be a real quote.
(Please tell me this isn’t a real quote.) https://t.co/BO3ygKNfhV
— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) July 30, 2023
A quote by an actual owner in the NFL. https://t.co/YMWfEVss96
— MileHighReport (@MileHighReport) July 30, 2023
Even with Manning falling in their laps it's pretty amazing this guy has a ring https://t.co/3wElz3Uogx
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) July 30, 2023
Jonathan Taylor: Can I have more money?
Jim Irsay: Nobody cares if you die. https://t.co/RauSoejTyH— Eric Nathan (@BarstoolNate) July 30, 2023
Once upon a time Jim Irsay cut Peyton Manning, who went on to play in two Super Bowls, so he obviously means it. https://t.co/zkNKjiS6qe
— Armando Salguero (@ArmandoSalguero) July 30, 2023
I need TMZ to leak the footage of what went down on that bus, because this statement is so unhinged https://t.co/PsUVwdJtIy
— JaguarGator9 (@JaguarGator9NFL) July 30, 2023
Running backs really got teams contemplating the heat death of the universe instead of paying them https://t.co/0kxeWJGRKc
— Shehan Jeyarajah (@ShehanJeyarajah) July 30, 2023
Yeah… JT not playing another down for them 😂😂😂
Jim Irsay is a wild wild man https://t.co/S2CKbUIRKk
— DeeksView (@DeeksViewOG) July 30, 2023
To be completely fair, Irsay is not wrong. No player playing his final game has brought about the end of the NFL, nor has anyone’s death. We certainly hope that Irsay doesn’t die tonight, just like we hope that Taylor has a lot of games left in him. But if either unfortunate event does take place in the near future, the NFL will continue to roll on.
But regardless of its accuracy, this seemed like a completely out of left field response to a contract negotiation gone bad.
