Report: Michael Irvin could join 'First Take' alongside Stephen A. Smith

Stephen A. Smith could have a new cohost on ESPN’s daily debate show “First Take,” as Front Office Sports reported Tuesday that the network is considering bringing on Michael Irvin to join him.

Front Office Sports reported that the deal is not yet finalized but is expected to be limited to “First Take,” meaning Irvin will not contribute to other studio shows such as “Sunday NFL Countdown” or “NFL Live.”

First Take moderator Molly Qerim Rose has coined Irvin as Smith’s “biggest rival” on television in the past, per Front Office Sports, in part because the duo has faced one another before on screen, participating in screaming matches over the Dallas Cowboys.

Smith has had an ongoing bit since the show’s debut in 2007 in which he has rooted strongly against the Dallas Cowboys. Much of the hatred stems back to Smith’s last cohost, Skip Bayless, who often expressed his deeply rooted Cowboys fandom on screen. Fittingly, Irvin, a Pro Football Hall of Famer, spent the entirety of his 11-year NFL career as a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.

Irvin attended the University of Miami and won a national championship before declaring for the NFL Draft in 1988. Selected with the 11th overall pick in the 1988 NFL Draft, he proceeded to win three Super Bowls while making five Pro Bowls; Irvin was once named an NFL first-team All-Pro, and twice named a second-team All-Pro. Irvin was inducted into the Cowboys Ring of Honor in 2005 after finishing his NFL career with nearly 12,000 receiving yards and 65 touchdowns.

Following his NFL career, he spent a few years working for ESPN, primarily as a member of the network’s “Sunday NFL Countdown,” before making the jump to NFL Network in 2009. He has been with NFL Network since he made the move in 2009, serving primarily as a host on “NFL GameDay Morning.”

Irvin would replace Smith’s current cohost Max Kellerman. ESPN announced Tuesday that Kellerman would increase his radio role, joining ESPN’s signature morning show with Keyshawn Johnson and Jay Williams, while hosting additional television series. As part of Kellerman’s move, he will be removed from First Take but will continue to host his weekly boxing show, “Max on Boxing,” on ESPN2. Details about his new television duties will be available at a later date, according to ESPN.

Front Office Sports also reported that if not Irvin, other internal candidates for the cohost role include ESPN talents Marcus Spears, Keyshawn Johnson and Jay Williams.