Michael Irvin on Ezekiel Elliott: 'His innocence has already been proven by the police'
Former Dallas Cowboys star Michael Irvin has a very strong take on the Ezekiel Elliott case, and he shared it on his weekly radio appearance.
Irvin, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, told 105.3 The Fan that people don't understand the basis of Elliott's fight.
"We keep talking about is he fighting for his name, fighting for his innocence," Irvin said Monday. "His innocence has already been proven by the police."
"He's not fighting for guilt or innocence," Irvin said. "He's fighting the league in the implementation of their domestic violence policy. So when people tell me he's fighting for his name and guilt or innocence, he's already innocent and you haven't given it to him. So you're never giving it to him! Shut up and get out of my face with that.
"The reality of this situation that this young man is in is ... he's already been proven innocent or whatever you want to call it by the police. He's not fighting for that."
Elliott was suspended for six games by the NFL in August for alleged domestic abuse against an ex-girlfriend. He was not charged after Columbus (Ohio) police finished investigating the incident, but the league ruled Elliott violated its personal conduct policy.
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Elliott said last week when his six-game suspension again was delayed:
"When you get accused of something of that magnitude, you kind of get labeled as an abuser. And that's just not me, that's not how I want to be seen, not how I want to represent my family. It's just important for me to fight."
Elliott played Sunday in the Cowboys' 40-10 rout of the San Francisco 49ers, scoring three touchdowns and notching 137 rushing yards. He will play again this week against the Washington Redskins.
A hearing Oct. 30 in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York will determine whether Elliott can continue to play or must start serving the suspension,
"To be 3-3 right now, this has been a tough, tough ordeal with all Ezekiel Elliott is going through and how everybody's trying to attack the Cowboys and slow down the run game and you're trying to bring along a young defense at the same time and just got back Sean Lee," Irvin said.
"It's kind of funny. It's like you want to say we're back because you saw it: You saw the punishing run game, you saw Zeke get what he needed to get, and you see how everything works off that. But I'm afraid if I say it or if you say it, then something comes down Oct. 30, where are we?
"It's just a difficult time. I don't envy the job Coach (Jason) Garrett has to do preparing these boys every week. Think about the guys in the locker room now."
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