Colts owner Jim Irsay treated after suspected overdose, per police

Colts owner Jim Irsay was found unresponsive and struggling to breathe last month at his home in Carmel, Ind., due to what police logged as a suspected overdose, according to police reports obtained by The Athletic on Wednesday. The incident occurred on Dec. 8, when emergency responders were dispatched to Irsay’s home at approximately 4:30 a.m. ET.

Carmel police were dispatched to the residence to assist with “a male that was unresponsive, breathing, but turning blue,” per the police reports. The man was later identified as Irsay. One police officer wrote in his report that Irsay was “cool to the touch and had agonal breathing,” so he used naloxone (more commonly known as Narcan) on Irsay. A different officer wrote in his report that Irsay “responded slightly” to the naloxone before eventually being transported via ambulance to a local hospital.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, naloxone is “a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose” and should be used when someone “shows signs of an opioid overdose or when an overdose is suspected.” The officer added in their report that at the time, it was “unknown” what Irsay ingested before he arrived, but he noted the prescribed medications Irsay had at the residence.

Irsay attended the Colts’ home game against the Steelers at Lucas Oil Stadium on Dec. 16, eight days after the police were sent to his home, but he’s rarely been seen publicly since.

The Colts announced Jan. 9 that Irsay was being treated for “a severe respiratory illness” that forced him to miss a performance with The Jim Irsay Band in Los Angeles on Jan. 11. Colts general manager Chris Ballard was asked during his season-ending news conference on Jan. 11 if he had an update on Irsay and he said: “No, other than he’s stable and they’re working through it.”

After the December incident at Irsay’s home became public Wednesday, the Colts released another statement regarding Irsay’s respiratory illness. It is not clear whether or not the two situations are related.

“Mr. Irsay continues to recover from his respiratory illness,” the Colts said. “We will have no further comment on his personal health, and we continue to ask that Jim and his family’s privacy be respected.”

Irsay’s history of addiction and advocacy

In 2018, Irsay bought the founding document of the Alcoholics Anonymous 12-step program and called it “the most significant occurrence of the 20th century” because of the countless lives it has saved, including his.

The Colts owner has been candid about his battles with drug and alcohol addiction throughout the years, perhaps none more public than a March 2014 incident when Irsay was arrested by Carmel police and charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated. There were bottles of prescription medications in the vehicle. A toxicology report later revealed that Irsay, who performed a wobbly field sobriety test, had oxycodone, hydrocodone and alprazolam in his system when he was pulled over. He eventually pleaded guilty to operating a vehicle while intoxicated in September 2014.

Following his arrest and conviction, the NFL suspended Irsay for six games and fined him $500,000 for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.

“I truly hope and pray that my episode will help in some small measure to diminish the stigma surrounding our country’s terrible and deadly problem of addiction,” Irsay said in a statement at the time. “It is a disease like other progressive, terminal diseases — one that can only be successfully treated by understanding, committed hard work and spiritual growth.”

In an interview with HBO’s “Real Sports” that aired in November 2023, Irsay backtracked and claimed his 2014 arrest was bogus and that he was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol. However, in the same interview, he publicly admitted for the first time that he did have a drug overdose during a separate incident and nearly died.

“I was trying to detox myself, and I mixed multiple drugs that I didn’t know anything about,” Irsay told HBO. “So, all of a sudden, I start slurring my words. And then code blue, I stop breathing and they revive me and the doctor goes, ‘Jim, you’re one lucky man because I had virtually signed the death certificate.’”

Longtime NFL figure

Irsay, 64, became the Colts’ general manager in 1984 when he was 24. He became the youngest owner in the NFL at just 37 after his father, Robert Irsay, died in 1997.

Jim Irsay inherited the franchise from his father, who also had issues with alcohol and was known for being an impulsive and volatile owner. Robert Irsay moved the franchise overnight from Baltimore to Indianapolis in 1984.

The Colts have made 19 playoff appearances and reached two Super Bowls since then, capturing the Vince Lombardi Trophy in 2006-07.

The Colts recently completed an encouraging season under first-year head coach Shane Steichen. He guided the team from a 4-12-1 finish in 2022, including the largest blown lead (33-0) in NFL history in a loss at Minnesota, to a 9-8 record in 2023. Indianapolis fell one victory short of reaching the playoffs and winning its first AFC South title since 2014.

Irsay has previously praised Steichen and talented dual-threat rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson for helping push the franchise into a new era.

Required reading

(Photo: Justin Casterline / Getty Images)