Jonathan Taylor’s agent calls out Jim Irsay after the Colts owner criticizes NFL RBs

Things are getting messy for the Indianapolis Colts, fast. Since the team has returned for training camp, Jonathan Taylor and his contract situation has been a major focus. The running back, who’s admittedly frustrated with the running back market, was randomly place on the PUP list, and not everyone’s convinced that it’s actually injury related.

Well, on Wednesday, things escalated to another level, with Colts owner Jim Irsay jumping on Twitter to stir the pot. Wednesday night, Irsay pretty much took a stand against the running backs, calling their desires for another negotiation to the CBA “inappropriate.” Irsay has always been one to speak his mind, but many were confused why he’d take this conversation public, with the running back of his team entering the final year of his contract.

Irsay wasn’t just going against all running backs, he essentially declared a public battle against arguably the best player on his team. Sure enough, there was a rebuttal. It didn’t come directly from Taylor, but it did come from his agent Malki Kawa.

Jonathan Taylor’s contract situation with Colts is officially messy

With Irsay saying that agents are selling bad faith, Kawa explained that the real bad faith is not paying the team’s best offensive player. That was the end of the public exchange, for now, but once things go public, there’s no putting the toothpaste back in the tube.

This is much different from how this contract situation with Taylor and the Colts started. When the offseason program first began, Taylor had a nonchalant attitude toward his expiring contract, saying that he wouldn’t care if it didn’t get done this offseason. However, as time went on, and running backs were being undervalued throughout the league, Taylor’s mindset started to change.

Whe he spoke with the media during minicamp, he explained how disappointing it was to see what was going on with running backs in the league, and that he hopes the Colts see his value, because he wants to retire with the franchise. But, once all the franchise-tagged running backs failed to get long-term deals, Taylor’s frustration grew, and he’s now on the PUP list as his agent and team owner battle on Twitter.

Interestingly enough, Taylor switched agents this offseason, hiring Kawa and Ethan Lock. Although they’re his new agents, they already have a history with the Colts, as they also represent Shaquille Leonard. Kawa and Lock negotiated an extension that made Leonard the highest-paid off-ball linebacker at the time.

It’s unclear if Taylor wants to reset the running back market completely, or if he’s just looking for a contract that’s more reflective of an elite running backs value to a team. It’s even more unclear if he’ll get a contract like that from the Colts.

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