So, what did Tom Brady say to Tyrann Mathieu during Super Bowl LV?
Brady and Mathieu went face-to-face during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Super Bowl LV win over the Kansas City Chiefs, with both players displaying heightened emotion. After the game, Mathieu claimed Brady called him a name he wouldn’t repeat, with Brady reportedly apologizing sometime thereafter.
The vagueness of Mathieu’s remarks has led some to speculate that Brady uttered a racial slur during their on-field dustup. Brady also has been criticized by some, including Shannon Sharpe, for the way he apologized to Mathieu.
Enter: Michael Irvin, who apparently has heard mic’d-up audio from the on-field altercation.
As a co-host of “Inside the NFL,” Irvin does have access to behind-the-scenes audio, though he is contractually prohibited from revealing details before the broadcast. Still, during an appearance Tuesday on “The Rich Eisen Show,” Irvin claimed that Brady did not use a racial slur while speaking to Mathieu.
“I didn’t like that Tyrann Mathieu put that out like that,” Irvin said. ” … Because, I go, come on now. It makes it sound as if — it makes people want to know, ‘What’d he say?’
“As if he said the n-word. And he did not. Tom did not. So, you know, I didn’t like that even looming over this situation. So that’s why I think we should clean that up somewhere, somehow.”
Added Irvin: “That’s what I’m saying. (Brady) didn’t say that. … This was just two guys competing.”
Make of that what you will.
Unfortunately, the Brady-Mathieu audio was not played during Tuesday night’s “Inside the NFL” episode. Perhaps it will be shared in the future.
If not, this looming Super Bowl mystery likely will continue to produce wild speculation.
