By DANNY BRIDGES
People much smarter than me can tell you that the easiest thing to do is advise someone else how to spend money in a big business venture.
Carlie Irsay-Gordon doesn’t want a nudge from a guy who has never inherited a mess of epic proportion, but I’m more than happy to tell her that by now she’s had a birds eye view from the sidelines long enough to witness just how much more dismal things have become overall with the Indianapolis Colts.
While her continual hands-on approach has been admirable, she should know that it’s time to change the executive roster and to do it quickly and cleanly, allowing for the rebuilding to begin.
Notice l said rebuild as opposed to rebooting as this team clearly has nowhere to go but upward, and it’s time to get moving on the total reclamation project that’s long overdue.
Firing your general manager and head coach are major decisions and the process of replacing them takes time, so why not jumpstart the process by jettisoning them right now, amidst another lost season, and get a head start on the overhauling of a roster that really won’t improve with just another addition of questionable draft picks, as well as mortgaging their future by relinquishing valuable draft capital in questionable trades, along with more ill-advised free agent signings that when combined, will simply further delay that much needed rebuilding?
To be crystal clear, it’s time to acknowledge this team as currently constructed has no resemblance of playoff contention and blowing it up now rather than waiting until the end of the season not only makes sense; it sends a clear message to an overly faithful fan base that the painful process of this rebuilding has finally begun and will be done properly.
There’s no aspect of this organization whatsoever that should be exempt from scrutiny and while the carnage will be significant, it’s beyond overdue and must be immediate to lessen the period of great mediocrity that will come with this house cleaning.
While a large number of good people will lose their jobs, it’s simply part of the obligation the ownership group of this once proud franchise currently has and it’s incumbent upon them to take action now and begin what will most likely be a painful, prolonged process that will lead to future prosperity and more importantly, respectability.
For the record l like Chris Ballard as a person and think Shane Steichen is a good man as well, but both have been well compensated and will find work elsewhere eventually. It’s simply time for them to go and l wish them well.
Having said that, the first step will be the hiring of an experienced NFL personnel individual who must be both paid well to inherit this debacle and given control over this major reconstruction project.
Let them make their bones with a good coaching hire and the colossal oversight of revamping an anemic roster, through the process of drafting quality athletes and signing select free agents to reasonable contractual agreements. Sounds easy but it won’t be as it never is in the world of professional sports, but the longer Irsay-Gordon delays the inevitable the more fractured this rather bleak situation will become.
There’s absolutely no reason to allow this season to “play out” as we already know how it will end. Clearly, she has both the authority and the vast financial resources to make it happen, so the only question is what in the world is she waiting for?
Danny Bridges, who thinks the Colts can once again be relevant in the NFL, can be reached at (317) 370-8447 or at bridgeshd@aol.com.
Danny Bridges is an award-winning journalist and a longtime sports columnist for the Indianapolis Recorder. He covers college, professional sports and especially all things IndyCar racing. He can be reached at 317-370-8447 or at bridgeshd@aol.com.
