Jim Irsay Hits Back At Critics After Jeff Saturday Wins Coaching Debut

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Jim Irsay went on offense after Colts interim coach Jeff Saturday started his NFL coaching career with a win.

When Irsay named the former Colts star and current pundit the team's interim coach, he was immediately hit with serious criticism.

Most notably, Joe Thomas and Bill Cowher acted like what Irsay had done was completely indefensible.

After the Colts beat the Raiders, Irsay hopped on Twitter late Monday afternoon and let people know they should keep the same energy.

If you're going to talk big about a hiring decision, you better not run and hide once things go the other way. Many people expected Jeff Saturday to get embarrassed Sunday against the Raiders.

Again, the man had zero coaching experience. It's not hard to understand why people expected him to flop. It would have made a lot of sense if he'd failed.

Yet, that's not what happened. Saturday and the Colts pulled off an unexpected 25-20 win.

Did the old guard want Jeff Saturday to fail?

You know why the loudest critics in the world of the NFL are unhappy? It's because Jeff Saturday walking off his couch, joining an NFL team as the franchise's leader and going 1-0 proves it's not as hard as people want you to think.

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Jeff Saturday started his NFL coaching career with a win over the Raiders. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)

Judging from the way Cowher talked, you'd think being an NFL coach was similar to being the pointman on the raid to ace Osama Bin Laden. If Saturday had gotten blown out in his debut, that narrative would likely have continued.

Instead, Jim Irsay's Colts got a huge win, and the perception it's an insane job that requires an unreal amount of time has kind of been shattered. It's a bit strange how you don't hear as much chatter and sniping anymore. Weird, right? Maybe people all stopped having access to wi-fi late Sunday.

Jeff Saturday is 1-0 as a head coach in the NFL. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Props to Irsay for chirping back after his guy got a huge win. You love to see it.

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David Hookstead is a reporter for OutKick covering a variety of topics with a focus on football and culture. He also hosts of the podcast American Joyride that is accessible on Outkick where he interviews American heroes and outlines their unique stories. Before joining OutKick, Hookstead worked for the Daily Caller for seven years covering similar topics. Hookstead is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin.