Michael Irvin’s quest to clear his name landed in an Arizona courtroom Thursday. And the former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver scored a big win.
TMZ reports “a judge has ordered that an Arizona hotel now must turn over any video it has of an interaction the Hall of Famer had with a woman that ultimately led to his removal from NFL Network’s Super Bowl coverage last week.”
The judge ruled Irvin’s attorney should receive the video by Monday. But that’s not all.
The judge also ordered that the hotel must provide the name of Irvin’s accuser ... as well as anyone else who may have filed a complaint against the former football player. In the order, the judge also ruled the hotel must reveal the names of the NFL employees who received the complaints.
TMZ previously reported a pair of people who claimed to have witnessed Irvin’s alleged inappropriate conduct one week before Super Bowl LVII at an Arizona hotel indicated the three-time Super Bowl champion did nothing wrong.
According to TMZ, Irvin filed a $100 million lawsuit days after after being sent home from the Super Bowl.
The New York Post reported NFL Network pulled Irvin from its coverage of the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs in Glendale, Ariz. “after a woman at a hotel made an unspecified complaint.”
Per TMZ, the Pro Football Hall of Famer claims he’s being “railroaded” as a victim of “cancel culture.” As a result, he filed a lawsuit against the unnamed accuser and Marriott, the parent company of the Renaissance Hotel, which was the location of the alleged incident.
According to the lawsuit, witnesses backed Irvin’s initial claim that he “casually exchanged pleasantries” with the employee (“Jane Doe”), “shook her hand, and went to his room alone.” However, once Irvin and his team became aware of the allegations, they say they attempted to provide witness accounts to the hotel in an effort to rectify any misunderstanding, but they say the Renaissance refused to listen. In fact, the lawsuit accuses the hotel manager of reporting the alleged incident to the NFL “with the intention of damaging that relationship and canceling [Irvin].”
Irvin’s attorney says as a result of the allegations, the NFL legend had his reputation damaged and lost money because of canceled appearances.
Irvin told his side of the story to the Dallas Morning News and described the interaction “as a brief, public and largely non-physical encounter. He said he engaged in no physical contact with the woman beyond a handshake when they parted ways.”
“Honestly, I’m a bit baffled with it all,” Irvin said. “This all happened in a 45-second conversation in the lobby. When I got back after going out … I came into the lobby, and I talked to somebody. I talked to this girl. I don’t know her, and I talked to her for about 45 seconds. We shook hands. Then, I left. … That’s all I know.”
Irvin told the Dallas Morning News he hasn’t seen the woman since the initial encounter. He also said he couldn’t remember “the full nature of their conversation but insisted the only physical contact between the two was the handshake.”
“I don’t really recall that conversation, to tell you the truth,” Irvin said. “We were out drinking. It was just a friendly conversation. ‘What’s up?’ I don’t even know. … I am totally perplexed. ... There was definitely nothing physical. … That’s honestly all that happened. Nobody was in my room. It was a 45-second conversation in the lobby, a handshake and we left. … I don’t know. I don’t know what this is, and it’s running me crazy.”
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According to the Dallas Morning News, a Glendale police spokesperson and officials from other local police agencies said “they have no knowledge of any incident involving Irvin.”
The 56-year-old Irvin was a wide receiver for the Cowboys from 1988 to 1999. He was five-time Pro Bowl selection and 2007 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee. Irvin joined NFL Network two years later.
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Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.