Michael Irvin 'Outraged' With ESPN's NFL Draft Broadcast

Former NFL star Michael Irvin was not happy with ESPN's broadcast of the 2026 Draft in Pittsburgh.

The former Dallas Cowboys great, who played collegiately at Miami, remains a die-hard Hurricanes fan. He was there every step of the way, for Miami's College Football Playoff run last season. Irvin was watching the NFL Draft with a close eye this weekend, but he had a problem with ESPN's coverage.

Irvin accused ESPN of being unfair with former Miami Hurricanes standout Rueben Bain Jr., who ended up going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 15th overall pick.

Irvin accused ESPN of being "classless" with their coverage of Bain Jr., who slipped out of the Top 10.

"They don't ever stop trying to somehow, someway assault us," Irvin said during an appearance on SportsGrid's Outspoken with Dan Sileo, per Awful Announcing. "And it was absolutely classless and uncalled for. When Rueben Bain's name got called, this is one of the greatest moments of your life. You're gonna look back at this tape all the time and watch that year you got drafted.

"And ESPN, these mother… when he was walking, did you see the infobar? It had his arm length. I said, ‘Are you (expletive) me? You're supposed to have a highlight here, not a lowlight! Not something that everybody's been talking about, that has made this man's value fall down."

ESPN labeled Bain's arms as the "shortest by 1st-Rd edge rusher since 2003."

"That's insane. That was just incredible," Irvin ranted to Sileo. "And I thought it was so classless by them to do that…ESPN put up some garbage."

The Bucs are extremely happy to have him, though

Todd Bowles is very happy to see him arrive.

"It's his physical style of play -- from a mental standpoint and a physical standpoint," Bowles told reporters on Friday, via team transcript. "Pass rushers come in different ways and different types and different sizes. Some are power, some are speed, some have an arsenal, some can bend, some can't. He can do it all. He can do it all and he shows that up and down the line of scrimmage. He plays with a mentality -- a no-losing mentality -- at all times. He fights and he plays with the right kind of attitude and mentality that we're trying to bring to this team."

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This story was originally published April 27, 2026 at 1:25 PM.