Colts owner Jim Irsay won't be in draft room amid recovery - ESPN

INDIANAPOLIS — Colts owner Jim Irsay, who has been out of public view for months, said he is gearing up for the NFL draft even while recovering from what authorities described as a suspected overdose and other health issues.

Irsay said in a phone interview with ESPN that his current challenge is rehabilitating from major surgery on his lower back area that has severely limited his mobility and will keep him from being in the Colts' draft room later this week. But he said he'll still have a presence, adding that the team's affairs are running per usual despite his physical absence.

«The main thing is I'm just following my doctors' orders and just making sure the bottom line is just to get back to 100% and to do the things they say,» said Irsay, who has undergone numerous surgeries on his back, hips and extremities from years-old powerlifting injuries. «I'm just being a good patient and trying to make sure I can get back sooner than later. I'll get back on the golf course sooner than later.

»It's going fine. It's just a test of patience."

Irsay was hospitalized on Dec. 8 after emergency responders were called to his home because he was found unresponsive and with a weak pulse, according to a police report. Officers characterized the incident as a suspected overdose. Then, on Jan. 9, after fielding questions about his whereabouts, the Colts said Irsay was being treated for a severe respiratory illness. Nearly a month later, on Feb. 6, Irsay said in a post on X that he was «on the mend» in the first significant update about his health.

Irsay on Monday didn't directly address the December incident, but he did reference his own admissions about struggles with addiction.

«I've had some episodes in my past,» said Irsay, who also