Jim Irsay was unique in a lot of respects as an NFL team owner, but the most notable one might be how much affection all of his players had for him personally. Reggie Wayne put that into words, and tears, on Wednesday.
Speaking with reporters at OTAs for the first time since Irsay’s death was announced last week, the Colts’ No. 2 all-time leading receiver broke down in tears while discussing Irsay’s impact on himself and the Colts.
Wayne played for the franchise from 2001-2014, never appearing in a game for another team, and now works as the wide receivers coach in Indianapolis. He said he assigned his players homework to learn about Irsay.
Reggie Wayne was very emotional talking about his friend, Colts owner Jim Irsay.
“He cared about his players. He cared about his team. He cared about the city.” pic.twitter.com/nwbrHbOY8g
— WISH-TV News (@WISHNews8) May 28, 2025
Wayne’s comments:
“I told the receivers, I said, ‘A lot of y’all don’t really know him.’ He would’ve did anything for anybody.’ He would have gave the clothes off his back. I said, ‘Y’all don’t really know him,’ and luckily, like all them dudes, they’ve just been here. So you don’t know nothing else, but he cared about his players. He cared about his team. He cared about the city. And it wasn’t just the players, he cared about people in the building.
“He was that dude. And I told them, I said straight up, man, ‘Y’all don’t really know him, but y’all got to bust y’all ass for him, because he would’ve done that for y’all.’ That’s what I told them. I said, ‘Y’all got homework to do, man. Read about him. Learn about him, so you really know the type of person he was.’”
Wayne recounted his experience with Irsay when seeking his last contract with the team, specifically when the billionaire intervened personally when it appeared he was headed out the door:
“I don’t even think I’m coming back, to be honest with you. S***, I’m getting ready to take a trip to Chicago and Kansas City and — they blowing my phone up, trying to set up a flight. They kinda going back and forth and all of a sudden, my phone rung, and it was his number. I’m like, ‘What the hell are you calling me for?’ I answer and it’s him.
“Got that, ‘Hey Reg, what you doing?’ I mean, s***, I’m about to take a trip to Kansas City. He said, ‘You know what, nah, you’re not taking that trip. Let’s get this thing done.’ I said, ‘What took you so long to call?’ He said, ‘I had to watch my favorite TV sitcom.’ He was like, ‘We don’t need no agent, we don’t need no nothing.’ So I actually did that deal with him, by myself. I gave my agent 3% and I don’t even know why. That baffles me to this day.”
Wayne ended up signing for three years and $17.5 million. After putting pen to paper, he said Irsay admitted to him, “You know what?’ You could have asked for 30 and I would have given it to you.”
For all of Irsay’s flaws, there was no question how much he loved his team. Team owners like him, who position themselves as a real member of the community and make their players feel taken care of, are becoming increasingly rare in the league as bottom lines on both side of the negotiating table become larger.
Irsay inherited the franchise from his father Robert Irsay, who moved it to Indianapolis from Baltimore, and treated it like a true family business, right down to his daughters taking over the team following his death. His players felt that side of him too, as Wayne said:
“There was times when I felt JI treated me like one of his sons, even though he didn’t have any. … He had the biggest heart in the city. We all know how caring he was, how easy he was as far as giving. I’ve always said, to a lot of people in the city, kids and all that stuff, they think the athletes are the real heroes, right?
“Nah, we were just Robin. He was the Batman.”
