Once again, Michael Irvin finds himself in the middle of a problem. This time it is because of the new reality television show that he is producing and claims to have created called “4th and Long” where regular guys get the chance to try to make the Dallas Cowboys. Irvin is being sued by three other men over the situation, claiming fraud and breach of contract. When a process server attempted to serve Irvin, he dismissed it out of hand.
Irvin claims that he did not steal any ideas. He does concede that he knows the men, but he claims that they are just fishing for money. Oddly, the men have meetings with Irvin going as far back as 2007 outlined in the lawsuit. There has been no specifics released as to what those meetings were about, though them men claim that contracts were issued to cover the division of money.
Michael Irvin rose to stardom as the playmaker for the Super Bowl Dallas Cowboys teams alongside of star quarterback Troy Aikman, and superstar running back Emmitt Smith. His highlight reel catches and clutch plays earned him the reputation as one of the big play stars of the ninties. The receiver regularly scored winning touchdown grabs and big plays throughout his NFL playing career.
Michael Irvin is no stranger to controversy. Over the years, he has been arrested several times on everything from cocaine possession to a media frenzied case of sexual assault that was later proved to be falsified by the woman who accused him. Some of the controversy has been brought on by Irvin himself, however, such as the drug cases and his often inflammatory comments in the media. On The Dan Patrick Show, he made some thinly veiled racist remarks about Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, but later apologized saying that it was just his way of joking with the quarterback.
The show debuted in May on Spike TV and has received lukewarm reviews. Oddly enough, one would think that if the men were making up the allegations they would do it with a more successful show. It is not as though 4th and Long is tearing up the ratings wars. How much profits can their possibly be for this show?
How long this drags on probably will depend on how much truth is behind the allegations. If the men truly were ripped off by Irvin, then they will likely be offered some type of settlement. Thus far, the star receiver has denied any truth to the allegations and swears he will not pay them off. Irvin is the one with all the ties to the Dallas Cowboys organization and owner Jerry Jones. It is hard to imagine these men gaining any support from that end of the lawsuit. With the Cowboys in Irvin’s corner, the men would not likely stand a chance.
The show hinges on the prize of getting the chance to make the Dallas Cowboys NFL football team. That agreement certainly had to come across Jones’ desk, and Irvin is the only person that would seem to have that kind of pull. Still, it will be interesting to see how this plays out over the coming months and weeks.
