The Colts announced Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach. The Jim Irsay press conference was full of absolutely absurd quotes. Here are 5 absurd quotes from the Jim Irsay press conference.
“We were lucky he was available” – Jim Irsay
This is a very confusing comment from the Jim Irsay press conference. What was Jeff Saturday doing that he would be unavailable? He was working for ESPN. The last time he was coaching was in 2020 as a high school coach. Saturday was not on anyone’s coaching radar. The sense of urgency is entirely misplaced. No one was going after Jeff Saturday but Irsay makes it seem like he fought off droves of people to get him in the building. This was such a strange way to start the press conference.
Jim Irsay’s Rooney Rule Rant
I couldn’t decide on an exact quote from the Jim Irsay press conference for this one. There is so much meat on the bone here I couldn’t choose. Irsay was asked if the Saturday hire violates Rooney Rule which requires teams to interview minority head coaches for open positions. Irsay gave this gem of a quote.
“Tony Dungy, being in the Hall of Fame as the first African-American coach, and being followed by Jim Caldwell.”
This is the equivalent of someone saying, “I’m not racist. I have two black friends!” Irsay’s defense when questioned about the Rooney Rule was to say that he’s fine because he has hired black coaches in the past. He then parlayed that quote with a rant about how the media treats people unfairly and doesn’t get fired over mistakes. It was a wild sequence from the Jim Irsay press conference.
“Why am I a candidate for this?” -Jeff Saturday
The Jim Irsay press conference did not just feature Jim Irsay. Jeff Saturday and GM Chris Ballard also attended and had some memorable quotes. “Why am I a candidate for this?” is what Saturday asked Irsay when he was offered the job. Saturday echoes what everyone was thinking about this hire. How is he a candidate for this? Jeff Saturday seems like a great guy but he has little coaching experience. Irsay tried to compare this hire to the Bruce Arians hire in 2012. Here is Arians’ coaching resume. These two are not comparable. This was the most honest and relatable moment of the Jim Irsay press conference.
“Y’all been kicking the s— out of me for not drafting wideouts and now we’re underperforming on the offensive line.” -Chris Ballard
Chris Ballard got in on the absurd quotes at the Jim Irsay press conference. Irsay was questioned on whether Ballard would be back next year and Irsay gave an emphatic yes. This quote reeks of a man who is completely confident in his job security. He references two positions that the Colts are lacking in right now, wide receiver and offensive line. The crazy thing about this quote is that the entire offensive line was constructed by Chris Ballard! He voluntarily gives two prime examples of his failures in team construction. He doesn’t even get into the quarterback carousel the Colts have had over the years. This is one of the most mind-boggling quotes from the Jim Irsay press conference.
“I’ve never hired a losing coach” -Jim Irsay
A lot of confidence was portrayed in the Jim Irsay press conference. While many people were questioning why Irsay was hiring someone with no coaching experience, Irsay fired back with this tidbit. He has never hired a losing coach. I know in his mind this seems like a flex but it isn’t as much in this context. This press conference comes after you fired one of those winning coaches. If the coach has a winning record maybe he isn’t the problem (see the previous quote for some possibilities of who to blame). I know Irsay thinks he is flexing here but it honestly makes him look more foolish that he keeps firing winning coaches.
There are so many other absurd quotes from the Jim Irsay press conference. The whole video is amazing and amazing quotes are fired off left and right. It will be interesting to see how the Colts do under Jeff Saturday during the back half of the season.
