Why Michael Irvin is already comparing Cardinals' rookie Jeremiyah Love to a Cowboys legend

While most NFL teams now avoid taking running backs early, Arizona shocked the league in April by using the No. 3 overall pick on Jeremiyah Love. This move makes him the highest-drafted back since Saquon Barkley in 2018.

The Cardinals' No. 3 selection immediately triggered comparisons, including one from Michael Irvin that goes back 30 years.

Irvin connected Love to his former Cowboys teammate Emmitt Smith after the selection. "Great running backs changed that offensive line, and what I saw in him, I see in Jeremiyah Love," Irvin said.

He pointed to a goal-line carry Love made on a bad knee as proof of character over athleticism, adding: "I saw a run that told me his heart, not a skill set, not as fast as he could run, not a high jump, his heart."

Love earned that comparison through back-to-back elite seasons at Notre Dame. He finished 2025 with 1,372 rushing yards, 18 touchdowns, and 27 catches for 280 yards. 

He won the Doak Walker Award and reached the Heisman Trophy finalist list, the first Notre Dame back to claim the former.

Irvin's main point was that having Love will improve Arizona's offensive line, not the other way around. He saw how Smith did this in Dallas by having 11 consecutive seasons with over 1,000 yards between 1991 and 2001, even while the offensive line changed many times.

Emmitt Smith's production through roster attrition anchors Michael Irvin's case

Smith kept delivering after Gesek and Gogan left by 1994, after Stepnoski departed in 1995, and after Newton and Williams both exited before the streak ended in 2001. The blockers changed. The output did not.

Love showed the same pattern at Notre Dame. In 2024, center Ashton Craig tore his ACL, guard Billy Schrauth missed time with an ankle injury, and Charles Jagusah sat out with a torn pectoral. Love still posted 1,125 yards and 17 touchdowns that sophomore season, then topped it the next.

In 2026, love arrives in Arizona, bringing with it the history of making things happen during uncertain times. This is the main idea that Irvin understood.

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