When Hall of Famer Michael Irvin shared a typical update on social media, little did he know it would spark a massive backlash. On August 18, the former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver uploaded a picture showing him out for dinner with analyst Stephen A. Smith. Ever since, Irvin has been caught in a relentless storm of criticism over the meeting.

“That hurts,” Irvin pushed back on a livestream on his YouTube channel. “That hurts to think that, okay, you heard him have an opinion that you don’t like, and I should take that moment in time, that little inkling f****** moment in time in your pee-wee brain, and let it override all 35 years I’ve had me knowing this man — or I’m going to lose your support, whom I never met.”

Ever since he posted the photo, fans have been slamming Irvin for hanging out with Smith, who they feel is a Cowboys “hater.” For Irvin, a key figure in Dallas’ legendary 90s dynasty and a die-hard supporter of his former team, the pushback hits particularly close to home.

Even so, his connection with Smith runs deep. The pair first shared the screen on Fox Sports Net’s Best Damn Sports Show Period back in the early 2000s, when Smith was just breaking into the industry.

“Since you pulled me into all of it anyway, I’ll say it: what I was talking about earlier about the Stephen A. Smith stuff. You guys heard Stephen A. Smith and everybody saying to me, ‘Michael, what are you doing taking a picture with him?’ Guys, this is my friend in 35 years,” Irvin added.

Over the years, their bond deepened, and in 2021 Smith fought ESPN executives to hire Irvin as his marquee guest debater on First Take, turning their debates into a Monday morning football staple.

Even when external circumstances disrupted their on-air partnerships, their brotherhood remained ironclad. Smith fiercely defended Irvin on his independent show during the latter’s corporate suspension in early 2023, and he publicly cheered Irvin on when he became a morning ratings rival on FS1’s Undisputed later that year. Just last November 3, 2025, the duo reunited at Texas Live! for a special live road edition of The Stephen A. Smith Show featuring Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

However, Jones’ comparison of contract deals to an “old mother-dad deal” has not sat well with Smith. The owner first used the reference in 2025 during an interview with Smith himself, talking about edge rusher Micah Parsons, and then again this offseason, talking about wide receiver George Pickens’ extension.

“We’ve heard about it with Micah Parsons. Now we’re hearing about it with George Pickens, two dudes represented by the same guy. Jerry Jones has some explaining to do in that regard. But when I talk to him, especially when I see him, that’s a conversation that we’re going to have because I don’t like the way he didn’t have to do that. He could have come up with a thousand different ways to make his point rather than doing it the way that he did it. It’s very, very condescending, very insulting. And I’m telling you right now, black folks listening to that ain’t going to take kindly to verbiage that Jerry Jones used,” Smith said on ESPN’s First Take in April.

At that time, Irvin spoke against Smith’s opinion, saying the analyst was making “something out of nothing with this one.” The fans did not take those comments lightly and have been flocking to social media to call out the duo’s takes. But Irvin insists on rising above this politics.

“Guys, this is my friend in 35 years. And this is where it comes from: the politics. So people here want me to say, ‘Michael, he thought one thing, and since he thought this thing, I don’t want you ever talking to him again, or I’m going to cut you off.’ I want us to think about that thought,” Irvin said.

“That’s what this is. We’re so entrenched in these old right, left, left, right, up, down fights that we’re going to say to somebody that knows somebody 35 years…shut him out. That’s how crazy this is getting.”

Through it all, Irvin has kept his sense of humor about the backlash. He joked that he is getting too soft in his old age, and he admitted he is glad the football season is finally here. With games to talk about, everyone can shift the conversation back to the ball and find a better place.