Bye bye Michael

I am a huge Giants fan, have been ever since I was a kid. One of the fondest memories I have is of the 1990 team, against all odds, playing in argueably the greatest Super Bowl ever, beating a juggernaut of a team in the Bills on the famous Scott Norwood wide right. That was 17 years ago. Almost nothing has gone right since.

We had the Ray Handley years. We had the Dan Reeve years. We had the "all in" Jim Fassel years that produced one Super Bowl appearance and a lot of embarrassing episodes. Now, we have the Tom Coughlin era, that hopefully will include one more bad year (this year) so we can move on to another era, perhaps the Charlie Weis era or the Rex Ryan era.

Through all of these era's, however, one constant has seemed to be Michael Strahan.

There is no doubting Strahan's ability. He is, and has been, a GREAT defensive end. He has been one of the best defensive players in the league almost from his very day in the league and he has been indispenable to the New York Football Giants.

However, Strahan's opinion of himself has always been higher than the actual results on the field. Strahan has captained a Giants defense that was always better in reputation than in actual play. They ROUTINELY give up the big lead. They ROUTINELY get beaten down by the better offense. They almost ALWAYS get scored on in the fourth quarter like Britney Spears at a Monster Truck rally. And Strahan is as much to blame as anyone.

Can you name me the one moment, the HUGE defensive stand Strahan has made in the last 10 years where he won the game? Where's the big sack? Where's the stuff of the run? Where's the caused fumble or the interception he got on a tight end who never expected him to drop back into coverage?

Again, it isn't saying Strahan hasn't been a GREAT player, it is saying Strahan has never had a great moment in an important game and has never stepped up the most when his team needed it.

So now, Michael is threatening retirement. He is doing this as training camp begins. He is doing this only a few months removed from asking new GM Jerry Reese for a substantial contract extension in both money and years. He is doing this as defensive ends around the league have taken advantage of the new salary cap in football and cashed in.

Yet, we are suppose to believe that Strahan is truly having second thoughts about whether he would want to play again or not? Come on, only the most naive idiot would believe this is about retirement and not about money.

But, you know what I say to Michael Strahan?

I say bye bye.

The Giants don't need Strahan anymore. First, he is 36 years old, meaning his body and his abilities are natually going to be way down from where they were. Second, in the course of the last 4 years he has missed 17 games. In other words Strahan, due to injuries, has missed more than an entire year of football. Third, he is a loud mouth asshole who continues to show his ultimate unability to lead anyone but his attorney to the court room for his divorce proceedings. And he wants more money?

Simeon Rice who, at his best was and is every bit the player Strahan was, is a free agent right now, is not injury prone, is younger and is somewhat less of a talker (even though he has a tendency to open his flap as well). If I were the Giants, right now, I would sign Rice and tell Strahan to have fun trying to find the type of money he is trying to extort from the Giants someplace else. If nothing else it gets one more loud mouth asshole out of that locker room and away from a team that seems willing to turn any moment into a performance hampering distraction.

And how would the fans react? All you need to know about Strahan, who has spent his entire career with the Giants, is that not one single fan would care if Michael walked away as long as the Giants had a decent replacement set in place. Think about that for a second. Think about a person's legacy when looked at through the prism of the fans.

Strahan has never known another team and another city. He has played every one of his professional games with The Giants. He has established himself, stat wise, as one of the great defensive players this game has seen. He has been the best player on the Giants for well over a decade now.

A resume like that should earn one beloved status here in NY. When Derek Jeter retires people are gonna cry. When Willis Reed left NY mourned. When Mark Messier was traded there was outrage. When Lawrence Taylor decided to call it quits, people celebrated the career and cheered the player. With Strahan? There would barely be a sound if he left. No one would care. There airwaves wouldn't be filled with despondent Giant's fans demanding the team pay him whatever he wants to keep him. Privately, many would be relieved.

Why?

Because stats don't tell the entire tale of ones career. Giant's fans appreciate the skill of a Michael Strahan but they also remember that Strahan was on the field, many a game, where the Giants defense was invisible when it counted most and Mike was just as transparent during those times. There was little joy during Strahan's career in Giant land. Far more defeats made up those years than victories. Far more collapses than courageous stands. And because of that, whenever it is that Strahan walks away, or is carted away, or driven away, or traded away, or released away from Giants Stadium, nothing will be said.

In fact, this may be the perfect time to cut ties with Strahan as the Giants need to change the attitude of their clubhouse, and need to do it now. Some guys are gonna be who they are gonna be. Jeremy Shockey never met a shit head, moronic comment he didn't like and didn't think of first. Plaxico Burress never met an excuse for poor play he couldn't use. And there are so many "anonymous" players slamming each other, the coaches, the organization you would think it is a CIA effort in that locker room. But Strahan has been the biggest abuser of those rules, creating controversy wherever and whenever he can. The Giants need to beging to change that, and while you aren't getting rid of your star tight end and best wide receiver, you sure as hell can get rid of your surly defensive end who is a bad influence on the team already.

Either way, what this episode has shown is what everyone already knew to be true..........Michael Strahan has always been, and will always be about Michael Strahan. And the act, no matter what, is tiring.