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Michael Irvin, former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver
Wide receiver Michael Irvin played 12 seasons for the Dallas Cowboys, and for a stretch of four of those seasons, he was the most dominant receiver in the game, racking up a league-high 1,523 yards in 1991, when he was a first-team All-Pro. He is in the Hall of Fame, and has three Super Bowl rings in addition to the NCAA championship he won at Miami in 1987.
In fact, it was the hiring of his old coach from the Hurricanes, Jimmy Johnson, that helped spawn the Cowboys’ early 90s Super Bowl era. Irvin not only was a great player for Johnson, but he helped him make the transition to the NFL after the departure of Tom Landry.
Irvin’s influence was so great, that Jones now credits his star player with getting him into the Hall of Fame. Jones was inducted in 2017.
Jerry Jones Says Michael Irvin Got Him to Hall of Fame
Jones was talking Cowboys with TMZ at the Super Bowl, and the topic of next year’s team came up. Irvin has said how excited he is for what he expects to be a Cowboys renaissance in 2026, stemming from the hiring of new defensive coordinator Christian Parker and what he hopes is a new approach to free agency and the NFL draft, where the Cowboys are slate to have two first-round picks.
Jones responded.
“Let me say this, what I’m for is for whatever Michael Irvin is for,” Jones said. “I have a gold jacket. I wouldn’t have the gold jacket had Michael Irvin not played for the Cowboys, in a manner of speaking. … To be involved and be around the winning mentality or that winning physicality — when Michael says it, I listen.”
Cowboys Can Find Hope in Super Bowl LX
Jones was asked about his own level of excitement for next season, and he conceded that one reason he is excited is that he has changed his mindset. The hiring of an inexperienced DC like Parker does represent a shift in the Cowboys’ philosophy on building a coaching staff, which has usually been manned by experienced former head coaches.
He also said that the Super Bowl matchup between the Seahawks and Patriots was a reason for excitement.
“I would start with this Super Bowl,” Jones said. “Look at New England. Look at Seattle. They’re made up of—for the team—first year quarterbacks, the coaches are fresh on the scene. So the point is, in this day in the NFL, you can go from a pumpkin to a carriage so to speak and you can do it in a year, you can do it in two years. That’s very promising to me. I have been there, I understand how it’s done. I understand how it’s not done.’
But with the new philosophy on the defense, the hope is that more change will come, and the wins will follow.
“For instance, we’re redoing our defense,” Jones said. “That will change so much about the approach we have in coaching the defense. So, when you work for yourself like I do, you have to change what’s in the mirror.”
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney
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