Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay fired off several angry tweets at ESPN and First Take after comments the show made about him Wednesday.
Wednesday’s ‘First Take’ featured comments on Irsay’s interview that aired Tuesday on HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel. Irsay talked about his 2014 arrest for a DUI in Indiana, claiming he had been “prejudiced against as a rich, white billionaire.”
That comment turned heads in the sports world, and Irsay himself tweeted Wednesday he’d been treated with “mean spirited contempt” by ‘Real Sports’ and “Bryan Gumbel.”
First Take tackled the situation Wednesday.
“He got the team because his father had the team,” Chris Russo said. “The Irsay family bailed out of Baltimore.
“He had a lot of drugs in the car, $29,000 in cash. … I don’t look at him as a legitimate owner anyway, I look at him as a lucky owner. So what he says HBO [did], I pay no attention to him, because I don’t take him seriously … I think he’s a fool, so I try not to pay too much attention.”
Jim Irsay is on quite a grievance tweet storm today.
His tweet below seems aimed at these comments made by Chris Russo on First Take earlier today https://t.co/TzEPzT0G1d pic.twitter.com/ovtPYYPee5
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 22, 2023
Irsay fired off several more angry tweets Wednesday afternoon, threatening to sue First Take.
Irsay’s first tweet fell short on grammar but had plenty of venom: “1st take,your gonna get your ass Sued,because there was NO Alcohol,No illegal Drugs/$29,000 dollars is low for me to be carrying in ,2014 arrest/I give away $2000-$10,000 dollars to the homeless and needed on the street,All the time and pass it on,making the world better.”
1st take,your gonna get your ass Sued,because there was NO Alcohol,No illegal Drugs/ $29,000 dollars is low for me to be carrying in ,2014 arrest/I give away $2000-$10,000 dollars to the homeless and needed on the street,All the time and pass it on,making the world better❤️
— Jim Irsay (@JimIrsay) November 22, 2023
Irsay also went after other show hosts, tweeting, “And on 1st Take,the Woman that preceded Stephen A… how dare you pretend to know me; I don’t know your name and I don’t care to😡. If my Black Mother Dorthy was still alive..you’d be in some big Hot Water! You are mean and ugly🙃 Your a Nothing Burger😕”
https://twitter.com/jimirsay/status/1727445111405998208
Irsay also shared some of his background, including his contention that, “I worked for my living/bought 30% of the Colts Bank Loan,” an apparent reference to Russo saying his father gave him the team.
https://twitter.com/JimIrsay/status/1727435424011005961
Irsay’s X/Twitter eruptions Wednesday aren’t helping his reputation. Someone, whether it’s a family member, friend, or Colts employee, needs to intervene in his social media meltdown.
[Jim Irsay on Twitter]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.