Two Witnesses Defend Michael Irvin, Say Misconduct Allegations Are 'Fabricated'
Two witnesses have come to the defense of Michael Irvin after the Hall of Famer and NFL Network personality was pulled from Super Bowl coverage after being accused of misconduct by a woman in a hotel lobby.
Irvin appeared on ESPN's First Take Monday and hasn't been on the air since. The Dallas Cowboys legend has since fired back at the woman who complained about an interaction she had with him at an Arizona hotel, suing her and the Renaissance Hotel for $100 million after he claims he's been "railroaded."
In the days since that lawsuit - first obtained by TMZ - two witnesses seem to back Irvin's story that he did nothing wrong.
Phil Watkins told the outlet he watched and listened to the interaction between Irvin and his alleged accuser, which he described as "positive" and "friendly."
"It was a positive, friendly conversation. They had a brief interaction, it was 30, 40 seconds, he kept his distance at all times, stood about a meter away from her, they ended with a handshake and he literally turned around and went to the lift," Watkins said before being asked again if anything happened that could've been deemed inappropriate.
"Not at all. Not at all," he responded. "There was a little bit of laughter. Obviously a jovial conversation. Nothing untoward for me to actually take notice of what was going on."
Second witness says Michael Irvin did nothing wrong
That account seems to line up with what Irvin told the Dallas Morning News earlier this week when he called the accusations “baffling,” and stated that he shared a casual interaction with the woman with no physically abusive or sexual behavior implicated.
“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.”
Bryn Davis, a second eye witness, told TMZ the interaction lasted around 30 seconds to a minute and was nothing out of the ordinary.
"We walked back to go into the bar, went straight to go to his hotel room, and I guess somebody that worked there, I don't know if it was a waitress or a bartender I guess came up and said, 'Hey Michael Irvin.' And he said, 'Oh, nice to meet you, I'm Michael' and shook her hand," he said.
"The crazy part was it was like a 30-second interaction. It could've been a minute. I didn't really think much of it 'cause it was just a fan kind of thing."
Davis added that he was stunned later in the week when he woke up to the news that Irvin had been pulled from the air after the allegations.
"I felt sick when I saw it because it's the first time I was ever, firsthand experience where something like that happened that was just fabricated. It was a totally normal conversation," he continued.
"And the bar was relatively packed. It was a quick conversation in a crowded area. He went on his way and I never thought about it again."