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Michael Irvin said it’s “time to blow it all up” after the Cowboys’ ugly 33-30 loss to the Cardinals in overtime on Sunday.
The former Dallas wide receiver — who spent his entire career with the Cowboys and won three Super Bowl titles — was kicking and screaming on a chair over the heartbreaking finish for the home team at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
“This is as bad as it gets,” Irvin said in an Instagram video shared by his podcast page. “Time to blow it all up… whatever you got going on defense, gotta blow it all up.”
Dallas’ defense was having its best outing this season until Arizona’s quarterback change.
Gardner Minshew replaced starter Jacoby Brissett late in the third quarter and it resulted in four straight scoring possessions to end regulation that tied the score and sent the game into extra minutes.
Cardinals running back Tyler Allgeier played lights out for the offense — recording a 63-yard touchdown run, another 52-yard carry and a five-yard TD grab after Minshew entered the game.
Arizona’s kicker Chad Ryland hit a winning 42-yard field goal in overtime after missing a PAT that would have put the game away with six seconds left in regulation.
Irvin went through a roller-coaster of emotions while watching the game at a home with former three-time Super Bowl champ Willie McGinest Jr. and ex All-Pro running back LeVeon Bell. Both often co-host or make guest appearances on Irvin’s podcast.
“Being a Cowboys fan is NOT for the weak 🥀” the caption of Irvin’s video read.
“A last-second Cardinals touchdown, a missed extra point to force OT, and a heartbreaking finish. @michaelirvin88 went through every emotion watching the @dallascowboys.”
At one point Irvin said, “They gotta get rid of him,” repeatedly as Dallas had a six-point lead with 10 seconds to play in regulation. It’s unclear who he was referring to.
Irvin then was seen shaking his head and icing his knee as Ryland’s kick handed Dallas their worst loss of the season.
Irvin was not alone in his frustration among Cowboys alumni.
“This was absolutely embarrassing today,” former Dallas QB Ben DiNucci said on CBS Sports HQ. “They stink. I’m lost for words, honestly. They have so much talent on both sides of the ball, and year after year, week after week, all we see is just letdowns from them. I’m not sure what needs to change.
“… But at some point, the same old, same old in Dallas for the Cowboys, it’s not cutting it. Something needs to change. Somebody needs to look themselves in the mirror. I don’t know who it is, but that was an embarrassing loss for them.”
DiNucci explained that “the effort is not there for the Cowboys” and the leaders, such as quarterback Dak Prescott, defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and wideout CeeDee Lamb, need to address “the outside noise” in the locker room.
“Whoever it is, somebody needs to take control of that locker room and say, ‘Guys, whatever we’re doing right now is simply not working. We need to scrap this thing. We need to ignore the outside noise,’” DiNucci said.
“I think a lot of the problem in Dallas is there’s so much going on outside the game of football there. It’s hard for guys to compartmentalize football from what’s going on off the field. I can say that. I was there for a couple of years. I saw it firsthand on Mondays and Tuesdays; when I’m working out on off days, they’re running tours through the facility, letting people see us work out and meetings and this and that. There’s just a lot that comes with being a Dallas Cowboys football player, and I wonder if that at some point starts to take a toll on guys.”
The 3-5 Cowboys play the Colts (2-6) in Indianapolis on Sunday.
