On Saturday night, Osi Umenyiora, the Giants lone Pro-Bowl selection and star defensive end from their Super Bowl Championship team went down with a season ending injury in their annual preseason game against the Jets. Today, they have started to go to a drawing board similar to that of their neighbors the New York Jets; find a recently retired first ballot Hall of Famer and woo him back into playing. The way the Jets traded for Brett Favre, who decided he wasn't ready for retirement, was as great for publicity as it was for the team. However, if the Giants cajole Michael Strahan out of retirement, it will be a completely different story, though on the surface it appears similar.The main difference between the two situations is in the motivation. Brett Favre has come back because he has a bonafide desire to keep playing the game he has been a legend at for over 10 years. Money is not an option, since what the Jets are paying him is less than half of the $25 million the Packers offered him as "Please, for the love of all that is holy, do not play football" money. Not only that, if it was really about anything other than a desire to play, he would never in a million years come to the Jets. Even a Jets fan can admit they never in their wildest dreams ever imagined that Favre would play for the Jets before just staying retired. He hasn't had that a Steve Young or Troy Aikman helping of concussions throughout his career, so it is also safe to say he's not a couple beers short of a six pack. He moved his family across the country, to the biggest frying pan of media scrutiny, and turned away $25 million from the Packers to continue being a quarterback in the NFL with a desire to win. Plain and simple.
Michael Strahan, on the other hand, is a different story. Not soon enough after announcing his retirement, Strahan signed a broadcasting deal with Fox Sports to work the games on Sunday starting this season. As of right now, he's got a storybook ending in place; after winning the Super Bowl at the tail end of a 15 year Hall of Fame career, he goes out on top, like Elway. Strahan is also much more likable not only in the Giants spectrum, but among the rest of the league when compared to his former teammate Tiki Barber, who came as close to seeing someone eat their own foot throughout the course of a season as anyone last year. After retiring, prematurely and without a championship, Barber signed a lucrative broadcasting deal, then proceeded to bash his former team (mainly eventual Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning) who went on to win it all. He has alienated any chance of coming back in any role with the Giants, and burned more bridges in the course of a year than Julius Caesar. Needless to say that's a completely different rant, so back to Strahan.
Though he would be welcomed by the fans and his teammates with open arms, Michael Strahan should put the comeback rumors to rest before any more fuel is added to the fire. With his asking price for a return being anywhere between $8-$12 million, his return would strictly be about the money, unlike Broadway Brett's. I think the Giants front office dropped the ball on this one by letting it get out into the media so quickly (though media speculation may have fueled the rumors before the Giants even had time to think about it), and any football person should know they won't be any better or worse with or without Strahan this year.
Michael Strahan, on the other hand, is a different story. Not soon enough after announcing his retirement, Strahan signed a broadcasting deal with Fox Sports to work the games on Sunday starting this season. As of right now, he's got a storybook ending in place; after winning the Super Bowl at the tail end of a 15 year Hall of Fame career, he goes out on top, like Elway. Strahan is also much more likable not only in the Giants spectrum, but among the rest of the league when compared to his former teammate Tiki Barber, who came as close to seeing someone eat their own foot throughout the course of a season as anyone last year. After retiring, prematurely and without a championship, Barber signed a lucrative broadcasting deal, then proceeded to bash his former team (mainly eventual Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning) who went on to win it all. He has alienated any chance of coming back in any role with the Giants, and burned more bridges in the course of a year than Julius Caesar. Needless to say that's a completely different rant, so back to Strahan.
Though he would be welcomed by the fans and his teammates with open arms, Michael Strahan should put the comeback rumors to rest before any more fuel is added to the fire. With his asking price for a return being anywhere between $8-$12 million, his return would strictly be about the money, unlike Broadway Brett's. I think the Giants front office dropped the ball on this one by letting it get out into the media so quickly (though media speculation may have fueled the rumors before the Giants even had time to think about it), and any football person should know they won't be any better or worse with or without Strahan this year.
If the Giants truly believe that the absence of Osi Umenyiora or the addition of Michael Strahan will make or break the defense of their championship, then they have bigger problems on their hands. Finally letting go of one of the faces of their franchise rather than trying to mercilessly buy him back when his heart is not 100% in it, will allow them to move on and focus on the season on hand. Bringing Strahan back will shift the media frenzy from the Jets and the Favre story back over to Eli and the Giants, who have had less pressure on them in the past month or so due to Brett's arrival. Less media scrutiny, and less pressure from overzealous selfish players like Barber and Shockey is what brought the Giants together for their eventual Championship run. Bringing Strahan back into the picture will take the pressure off Brett and the Jets (so you won't hear me complain) but ultimately, will do more harm than good with less than two weeks left before the start of the season by giving Eli more to think about.
Tom Coughlin got his Super Bowl and got his contract extension and ultimately, it's the front office's call, but I think the Giants are smarter than risking the next several years for a crap shoot with a guy who hung it up much more wholeheartedly than Favre did in March.
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