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Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay spoke to the media Tuesday at the NFL owner’s meetings and discussed his former quarterback — and the current Washington Commanders quarterback — Carson Wentz.
Irsay spoke of his disappointment in Indianapolis missing the playoffs after a horrible and embarrassing blowout loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Wentz was terrible in that game, something he acknowledged when he was introduced as Washington’s quarterback earlier this month.
Irsay was frustrated multiple times during the 2021 season, with the Colts’ slow start and miserable finish. That frustration led him to one conclusion: Carson Wentz’s stint with the Colts would last only one season and that was not negotiable.
“I wish Carson well, I think he has a chance to go into a different environment and play great in Washington,” Irsay said per Zak Keefer of The Athletic. “It’s just, for us, it was something we had to move away from as a franchise. It was very obvious.”
He later clarified his remarks on Wentz.
“Carson is not the scapegoat,” Irsay said. “It simply didn’t work out for us and what we are trying to accomplish. I mean, he’s a good man, a good father and a guy who put a lot of effort into the year and worked really hard and wanted to have success. It just didn’t work out.”
It seems like Irsay is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. “It was very obvious” Wentz had to go, but he wasn’t the scapegoat? The Colts had more problems than Wentz in 2021. We’ve heard more than a whisper this offseason that the owner wasn’t a fan of Wentz because of his choice to not receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Now, was Wentz great in 2021? Absolutely not. But all the praise Colts head coach Frank Reich has heaped on Wentz is authentic. It likely wasn’t Reich or GM Chris Ballard’s decision to move on from Wentz after only one season.
If you listen to Reich and Ballard talk about Wentz, then Irsay, you have no doubt where the decision came from. The owner even admitted that the Colts would have likely cut Wentz even if it did cost the team the $15 million Wentz was guaranteed for 2022.
As the old saying goes, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”
We shall see if the Commanders have better luck with Wentz in 2022. He’s certainly wanted in Washington, something that wasn’t the case in Indianapolis — at least from ownership.