Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay might have set a new speed record for burning through all of the goodwill he had with a star player. After a one-hour private meeting between Irsay and star running back Jonathan Taylor, Taylor wants out.
According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, Taylor has formally requested a trade after meeting with Irsay earlier today. The move comes following comments Irsay made about running back contracts, followed by Taylor’s agent pointing out that Taylor deserves a new contract and stating that it’s unlikely the relationship can be repaired.
Fans were stunned that the relationship between Irsay and Taylor deteriorated so quickly. Irsay has quickly become the butt of jokes for letting things reach this point:
What an idiotic thing for Jim Irsay to do the other day. Maybe no single player on the Colts roster could help Anthony Richardson’s development more than Taylor, and he alienated him publicly https://t.co/qXDxR7YRbH
— Sayre Bedinger (@SayreBedinger) July 30, 2023
Standard outcome from 1 hour in a bus with Jim Irsay. https://t.co/BFabvkAoZI
— Andy Holloway (@andyholloway) July 30, 2023
JIM IRSAY RUINED EVERYTHING OH MY GOD pic.twitter.com/gWh24rsll9
— Luke Sawhook 🪚🪝 (@lukesawhook) July 30, 2023
Irsay a clown lol
— Joshua Terry (@_joshuaterry) July 30, 2023
All jokes about Jim Irsay aside, Jonathan Taylor may not have a whole lot of leverage in this situation. He’s now in the exact same situation that just about every other big name running back has been trying to get out of this offseason.
Taylor is heading into the final year of his rookie contract, after which the Colts can simply tag Taylor at a rate that’s affordable for them but probably not to the level of compensation that he wants.
This whole situation will probably go from bad to simply awkward by the end of the summer.