Jim Irsay had been open about his struggles with addiction during his tenure as owner of the Indianapolis Colts, and a new report says he suffered multiple relapses leading up to his death in May.
According to a story that was published in The Washington Post on Thursday, Irsay had at least three overdoses in the final five years of his life. Irsay, who was 65 at the time of his death, had been under the care of an addiction specialist named Harry Haroutunian.
Irsay was reportedly being prescribed large amounts of opioids and ketamine as part of a treatment plan that was put together by Haroutunian. Sources told The Washington Post that Haroutunian had prescribed Irsay more than 200 opioid pills before Irsay overdosed on two separate occasions in December 2023.
One of those reported overdoses was at Irsay’s home in Carmel, Ind., on Dec. 8, 2023. Police documents stated that first responders found Irsay unresponsive on a bathroom floor and suspected he had overdosed. Irsay was said to have been “slightly responsive” after being given a dose of Narcan, which is an opioid antagonist that is commonly used to revive people who have overdosed on drugs.
The Colts said at the time that Irsay was recovering from a severe respiratory illness.
Irsay reportedly overdosed again less than two weeks later at a resort in Miami. He had another overdose in Turks and Caicos in February 2020 and was hospitalized for a few days, according to The Washington Post.
Five people with direct knowledge of Irsay’s relapses expressed concern to The Washington Post about the treatment that Haroutunian was giving to Irsay. Haroutunian said he considered Irsay “a brother.”
“I dedicated 18 months of my life to try to care for him … as a brother,” Haroutunian told The Washington Post. “We did everything we could to make him as comfortable as possible.”
Irsay died at The Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. Haroutunian signed the death certificate, which listed the cause of death as cardiac arrest caused by acute pneumonia.
Irsay was open about his struggles with drug and alcohol addiction on numerous occasions in recent years. He admitted in a November 2023 interview with HBO’s Real Sports that he had been to rehab “at least 15 times” and once overdosed while trying to detox himself.
Irsay inherited the Colts from his father Robert, who had acquired the franchise in 1972. Robert moved the team from Baltimore to Indianapolis, and put son Jim in charge as general manager in 1984. He became the team’s owner in 1997 following the death of his father.
