On the same day Michael Irvin and his lawyer spoke out after viewing footage of the hall of famer’s conversation with a hotel employee, a video surfaced online that had NFL fans talking.
Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin held a press conference with his legal team and two witnesses Wednesday to deny allegations of inappropriate misconduct leveled against him by a Phoenix, Arizona, hotel employee during Super Bowl week.
Irvin, who has filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit, was kicked out of the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel on February 5th after a hotel employee accused him of misconduct following their brief interaction.
A video from February has since surfaced showing Irvin speaking to a group of people.
Unfortunately, this is not the video that Irvin’s lawyer was speaking of when he stated the Hall of Fame’s interaction with the woman in question was minimal and that nothing of substance happened.
Here’s how social media responded:
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Irvin gave an emotional statement in which he claimed that he still has no knowledge of the details of the allegations against him.
“This sickens me because in this great country, this takes me back to a time where a White woman would accuse a Black man of something, and they would take a bunch of guys that were above the law, run in a barn, put a rope around his foot and drag him through the mud – and hang him by the tree. Not a thought about what would happen, not investigation, not after repeated attempts of people trying to go and say, ‘Guys, here is what really happened.’”
“How can I defend myself if I don’t even know what I am defending myself against?” he said, before adding, “This just blows my mind that in 2023 we’re still dragging and hanging brothers by a tree. That blows my mind that I have no opportunity to defend – I don’t even know what I’m defending.”
According to his lawyer, the video shows Irvin and the woman meeting and shaking hands in the hotel lobby. Aside from that, McCathern said Irvin touched her elbow two times before leaving.
Irvin was then offered a drink at the hotel bar, but he declined due to his work obligations, but he did offer a picture instead. The people he took pictures with are now witnesses to the interaction he had with the woman.
Even if Irvin comes out of this okay, there is no telling if he will be able to return to his previous jobs with ESPN and NFL Network.
