Carlie Irsay-Gordon is the owner Jerry Jones, Woody Johnson wish they were

If you click on Carlie Irsay-Gordon’s bio page on the Indianapolis Colts' team website, you’ll see a picture of her taking notes on the sideline, presumably during a game, studying how coaches operate and how players develop. This is what she does and has been doing for years. Only now that she’s the principal owner and CEO of the Colts, a team handed down from the late Jim Irsay to his three daughters, has it become a bigger spectacle. 

You could argue it’s not really that important that an owner stands on the sidelines as a recognizable face on the team. But when that owner is wearing a headset, taking notes, staying locked into every play, it means something different. Some owners (Jerry Jones and Woody Johnson come to mind) pride themselves on being hands-on. But what they do and what Irsay-Gordon does are two different things. 

Jones and Johnson tend to micromanage, dipping their hands in every aspect of team operations. They criticize players and coaches, but their approach often feels combative rather than constructive. Irsay-Gordon, meanwhile, is involved in the Colts’ day-to-day in a way that’s thoughtful and informed, not performative. This isn’t a gimmick. It’s a model that should change how NFL owners engage with their teams.

Carlie Irsay-Gordon is setting a precedent Jones and Johnson should follow

You may not think what Irsay-Gordon is doing is noteworthy. After all, she’s observing and learning. But it’s deeper. It shows how invested she is in helping her team improve and most importantly, win. It’s a trend that other owners might take on and something Jones and Johnson could benefit from. 

Those two love to be at the forefront, yet they are constantly diverting attention from themselves and pointing the fingers at everyone else. Johnson went out of his way in front of media members to harshly criticize New York Jets’ quarterback Justin Fields, a player who (mind you) the team had hand-picked. Good owners don’t do that. 

Johnson has also publicly referenced the gaming franchise, Madden, as an evaluating tool. Whether serious or not, it shows how unserious he tends to be with his team. As for Jones, there's an exhaustive list of the things he's done that routinely put his team in a critical light. It’s one thing to hold a team, players and coaches responsible. It’s another to run in front of the camera and deflect any blame from yourself to everyone else and continue to run a circus in the background.

Irsay-Gordon is holding her team accountable in the best way possible. She’s keying in on play calls so she knows who’s making the mistakes. Was it an error from the booth to the quarterback's headset? Did a player get confused on the play call and disrupt it? As pattern develops, who does that fall on? If she has to call somebody out, she’s doing it knowledgeably. 

Irsay-Gordon isn’t on the sideline to impede and berate the coach or players during the game. She’s there to learn and understand first and then to address any issues later with a new perspective. She's not combative with coaches on their decision making, at least from what we've seen.

This is something Irsay-Gordon and her sisters, Kalen Jackson and Casey Foyt, have been doing for years, and now that they’re in the driver's seat, their voices are heard. She’s not the only reason the Colts have turned things around, but it does make you wonder why, in a season full of questions, they’ve suddenly figured it out.

Carlie Irsay-Gordon’s first season as principal owner shows what modern NFL leadership looks like

Football has long been dominated by male voices at the top, but the Colts’ success under the Irsay family shows how diverse leadership can elevate a franchise. Alongside her sisters, she’s part of a new generation redefining what ownership looks like. And the results speak for themselves: The best person for the job is the one who’s prepared to lead.

All those years absorbing how coaches operate and how players develop within their surroundings prepared her to take over the Colts. She’s hands-on in the right ways. She's blending what she’s learned with her own approach to leadership. The Colts are winning, and she’s the perfect example of how active owners can change the vibes of a team. 

None of this takes away what the late Jim Irsay built for decades, but the vibes in Indianapolis feel new. The Colts are competitive, and it's a reflection of the people leading them. What Irsay-Gordon is doing isn’t just good for the Colts. It’s the kind of ownership the NFL needs more of.

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