Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver and current NFL Network analyst Michael Irvin isn’t always the most self-aware individual in the football world, and that unfortunate tendency popped up on Sunday afternoon. First, NFL Network personality Cynthia Frelund posted a seemingly harmless selfie with Irvin prior to the start of actual football action.
Pretty sure @michaelirvin88 is the only person that makes a selfie stick cool… Happy #nfl Week 3! @NFLGameDay pic.twitter.com/GIG9PXNg9U
— cynthia frelund (@cfrelund) September 25, 2016
Then, Irvin decided to do a (very) dumb thing and press send on this Tweet, saying “I simply love pulling my stick out around you” to his co-worker.
https://twitter.com/michaelirvin88/status/780105856855580672
Immediately, fans and media members pounced on Irvin, rightly referencing the inappropriate tone of his message, recognizing the obvious double meaning with “stick” in the way that the former NFL wide receiver almost certainly intended. With outrage circling on the internet, Irvin did, at least slightly, walk back his comment, or at least attempted to explain his original intent.
No you guys NEED TO STOP WITH THE DIRTY MINDS. You know I meant my SELFIE STICK. 😉 https://t.co/fgwj3OLAUK
— Michael Irvin (@michaelirvin88) September 25, 2016
Whether you believe Michael Irvin in that he “meant” selfie stick is a personal choice, but it was, at the very least, a tone-deaf social media mistake. An he seemingly doesn’t seem to understand why that’d be a problem. Perhaps, at some point, the population at large will figure out that insinuating this type of thing is simply not okay, but today is apparently not that day.
