Over the final two years of Jim Irsay’s life, the late Indianapolis Colts owner and the team repeatedly hid his drug relapse from the public, the Washington Post reported Thursday.
Irsay, who died at age 65 on May 21, was under the care of a “luxury” recovery doctor at the time of his passing who prescribed him opioids and ketamine, according to the newspaper’s investigation.
This physician signed Irsay’s death certificate with cardiac arrest listed as the cause. No autopsy or toxicology tests were performed.
The Post interviewed five people with direct knowledge of Irsay’s relapse, including four who said they witnessed him receiving ketamine injections. The report found that Irsay suffered three overdoses in the last five years: in Turks and Caicos in February 2020; at his home near Indianapolis in December of 2023; at a Miami resort 12 days later.
The findings contradict the public explanations the Colts and Irsay provided to explain his rapidly declining health.
After the incident at his home, Irsay disputed the police report’s description of the event as an overdose. After the Florida overdose resulted in a four-month hospital stay, the team said he was being treated for severe respiratory illness and Irsay said he was recovering from back surgery.
The sources spoke to the newspaper on condition of anonymity, expressing fear of retaliation by the Colts.
The NFL team is now owned by Irsay’s three daughters, who declined to be interviewed for the story and released a statement requesting privacy.
“Our Dad was open about his battles with addiction and mental health. He never claimed to be perfect,” Colts co-owners Carlie Irsay-Gordon, Casey Foyt and Kalen Jackson wrote. “The media is not the place to address inquiries about information which is disputed, lacks essential context, or involves private medical matters.”
The physician at the center of the Post’s inquiry, California-based addiction specialist Harry Haroutunian, supplied the drugs that fueled Irsay’s addiction, per the report.
“I dedicated 18 months of my life to try to care for him … as a brother,” Haroutunian said in a statement to the Post. “We did everything we could to make him as comfortable as possible.”
The Colts will induct their late owner and CEO into their Ring of Honor during the Sept. 7 season opener against the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Under Irsay’s involvement with the franchise from 1984-2024, the Colts went 316-294-1 in the regular season and 13-16 in the playoffs with a victory in Super Bowl XLI.
