Why Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon wears a headset on the sideline during games

Billy Heyen

Why Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon wears a headset on the sideline during games image

It's a new era for the Indianapolis Colts.

After the death of Jim Irsay in May, his daughter Carlie Irsay-Gordon took over the role of principal owner and CEO of the Colts.

She co-owns the team with her sisters, Casey Foyt and Kalen Jackson.

Irsay-Gordon stands out for another reason, too: She likes to spend games on the sidelines with a headset on.

No, she's not calling plays. She just wants to be in the know.

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Why does Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon wear a headset on the sideline during games?

Carlie Irsay-Gordon began wearing a headset on the sideline to learn the family business.

And as time has gone on, she's realized it's a great tool to learn about the people who work for the Colts.

"I think one of the things that I learned in going through, even as back as when we hired Chuck Pagano (in 2012), is that sort of accelerated my, 'I need to learn more about this,'" Irsay-Gordon told the Colts' official website. "'I need to be able to say, is this person full of BS? Do they even know what they're talking about? And I think one of the things that being on the headset has really helped me learn is to the question earlier, it's such a complex organism of football team and how it operates."

Irsay-Gordon usually has a call sheet in hand, too. She's locked in.

"You could say, 'Oh, that person ran that route wrong,'" Irsay-Gordon said. "When you learn to find, 'Oh, someone tagged the wrong wide receiver, and it wasn't really the player's fault – it was the person that called it.' I think that's been very valuable, because it also helps us be able to know where do we need to make tweaks, what resources do we need, what do we need to fix. So much of it comes down to just how we operate and how things work and the headsets – I would suggest it for anyone else that has to pay coaches and GMs millions and millions of dollars. It helps you make a less expensive mistake potentially."

Colts head coach Shane Steichen told the team's website that he appreciates how Irsay-Gordon takes part in what's going on.

"As far as football, she's around and she understands it," head coach Shane Steichen said last month. "When you talk football with her, she gets it. She understands it. She goes over the defensive stuff, the offensive stuff. She's been involved since I've been here from Day One, very hands on and she's been tremendous. I think she's going to do a phenomenal job."

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle