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Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay took aim at his former quarterback Carson Wentz and the Jacksonville Jaguars at the NFL owners' meetings this week in Florida.
A couple of months removed from missing the playoffs despite having seven players selected to the Pro Bowl last season, Irsay admitted on Tuesday that the Wentz era was "a mistake."
"I think the worst thing you can do is have a mistake and try to keep living with it going forward," Irsay said, via the Indianapolis Star. "For us, it was something we had to move away from as a franchise. It was very obvious."
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Carson Wentz (2) headshot before the game between the Indianapolis Colts and the Jacksonville Jaguars on January 9, 2022 at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, FL. (Icon Sportswire)
Irsay penned a letter to the fans in January after the Colts were knocked out of the playoffs last season following a shocking defeat to the Jaguars in Week 18.
The 26-11 loss wasn't even as close as the final score indicated, as the team never held a lead against a Jaguars squad that finished with the NFL's worst record, earning Jacksonville the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming draft for the second straight season.
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Carson Wentz (2) is sacked by Jacksonville Jaguars outside linebacker Josh Allen (41) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton)
In the letter, Irsay wrote how the team finished the season in "perhaps the worst way possible."
On Tuesday, he took aim at Jacksonville — the Colts' rival in the AFC South.
"No disrespect to Jacksonville, but I mean, they're the worst team in the league. You play well and hard for the first quarter or so, and they're looking to go to their locker room and clean it out. I've never seen anything like that in my life," Irsay said. "You say, 'My God, there's something wrong here.' It needs to be corrected. I think that we feel like we did."
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Wentz only spent one season with the Colts after the team acquired him from the Philadelphia Eagles last offseason for a 1st-round pick and a 3rd-round pick. Wentz had the Colts in playoff contention for most of the season, but he threw for under 230 yards in each of the final five games — and lost the last two.
Irsay said he expected Wentz to carry the team on his back during games they were expected to win.
"Your guy’s gotta pick you up and carry you through Jacksonville," Irsay said. "He has to do it. Not an option. Has to. No excuses, no explanations."
Jim Irsay speaks during the ceremony for the retired jersey of Peyton Manning during the NFL game between the San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts on October 8, 2017, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN. (Photo by Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Wentz was traded to the Washington Commanders this month for multiple draft picks.
"You search for the right chemistry with any team," Irsay said. "In football, it’s as important as any sport that there is. If that chemistry is off, if it isn’t there, it can be extremely detrimental and lower performance to a degree that is stunning and shocking."
"For us, the fit just wasn’t right," the owner added. "I don’t know why. A lot of times you don’t know why, but you know it isn’t, and it was important for us to move in a different direction."
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To replace Wentz, the Colts traded for veteran quarterback Matt Ryan this month. Ryan had spent his entire career with the Atlanta Falcons.
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