Nearly 23 years after Michael Strahan took down Brett Favre in controversial vogue on Jan. 6, 2002 to interrupt the NFL’s single-season sack file, former New York Jets star Michael Gastineau aired out his grievances.
Late within the fourth quarter of the Green Bay Packers’ 34–25 win that fateful day, Favre gave himself as much as Strahan, who tapped him right down to tally a record-breaking 22.5 sacks on the 12 months. Many thought Favre made it too simple for Strahan to notch the file, together with Gastineau, who instructed Favre at a memorabilia present in 2023 that he “harm” him by doing that.
Shortly after ESPN posted the clip of their dialog to tease its upcoming 30 for 30 undertaking titled The New York Sack Exchange, Favre hopped on social media to offer his facet of the story.
“I used to be under no circumstances attempting to harm Mark Gastineau,” Favre wrote. “I used to be attempting to shut out a sport and squeeze the final little bit of enjoyable out of a hard-fought sport.”
Favre went on to jot down that on the play, he merely known as for a bootleg play pondering that it will be open. Strahan, nonetheless, beat his man and was proper there to take him down.
“In a unique sport or scenario, I’d have made an even bigger effort to keep away from the sack or TFL,” Favre wrote. “But at no level was I occupied with hurting Gastineau. Maybe it crossed my thoughts to assist Strahan. I didn’t suppose it by means of. That wasn’t my forte on the time.
“I simply needed to have enjoyable and compete. In retrospect, I perceive how Gastineau feels. We performed a brutal sport. Gastineau performed throughout an period the place guys didn’t make generational wealth.”
I’ve quite a lot of respect for Mark.
I hope sooner or later he joins me within the Hall of Fame.
He earned it. Look at his numbers.
He eclipsed 20 sacks twice and had 19 in one other 12 months!
(7)— Brett Favre (@BrettFavre) December 11, 2024
Strahan nonetheless owns the file with 22.5, though Pittsburgh Steelers star T.J. Watt tied him in 2021. Two different gamers—Jared Allen in 2011 and Justin Houston in ’14—tied Gastineau with 22 sacks.
