Who are the top 25 NFL players of the 21st century? That’s a question that ESPN recently set out to answer and as fate would have it, one retired member of the New York Giants made the cut.
Although he ranked a bit lower than many in Giants Nation would have thought, defensive end and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Michael Strahan, checked in at No. 19.
Key accomplishments: HOF (2014), seven-time Pro Bowler, two-time first-team All-Pro in the 2000s, 2001 Defensive POY, 22.5 sacks in 2001 (tied for single-season record)
Strahan is still a shareholder of the single-season sack record with T.J. Watt. There was a six-game stretch during that memorable 2001 season in which Strahan had 14 sacks and four forced fumbles. It was all part of a remarkable career that ended in fairy-tale fashion. How many other stars got to call it a career by winning the Super Bowl in their final season? It certainly didn’t hurt Strahan’s post-football interests, as he became a football analyst, TV host and two-time Daytime Emmy Award winner. “It helped being in New York,” Strahan once said. “My life is definitely different if I didn’t win that Super Bowl.”
No other Giants made the list but it’s worth noting that Strahan edged out a nemesis in Warren Sapp, who ranked No. 22 overall.
Unsurprisingly, NFL legend Tom Brady topped the list and one could only wonder what his resume would have looked like if not for Strahan and the Giants.