GREEN BAY, Wis. — Fueled by the upcoming premiere of an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary, a single play from the Green Bay Packers more than 20 years ago is the center of debate and controversy.
Packers Hall of Famer, offensive lineman Mark Tauscher, was on the field and told Wisconsin’s Morning News, “I think there was some shenanigans that were at play there.”
Let’s review — the Packers were closing out a victory against the New York Giants in January of 2002 when defensive end Michael Strahan, “sacked” quarterback Brett Favre. The play put Strahan over the top for the most sacks in a single NFL season.
Specifically, it put him over the top of the previous record holder, Mark Gastineau of the New York Jets. Gastineau, not then and not now, was not happy about that. Neither was the Packers’ O-line.
“I obviously was really disappointed with how that shook out. We did not want Michael Strahan to break that record. I know me personally, I know I didn’t,” Tauscher told WTMJ.
The play is controversial, as some, including and especially Gastineau, feel like Favre took a dive. Tauscher remembers it this way: Favre appeared to fake a handoff and then rolled to his right.
“Brett obviously did not hand the ball off and ran out, and Strahan was there,” he said. “You can take that for however you want. Brett has said what he has said. I think a lot of us would probably disagree with some of that.”
What Favre has said follows a recently publicized confrontation he had with Gastineau at a memorabilia show in Chicago. Gastineau approached Favre saying of the Strahan play, “…you fell down for him.” Gastineau also told Favre in the brief exchange, “I want to get my sack back. You hurt me.”
Favre this week took to social media to offer his point of view on the play, and the “dust up” as he called it, with Gastineau. Favre wrote, “I booted out of a run thinking it would be wide open, saw Strahan standing there and ducked down. The game was over. There was no need for me to do anything spectacular. It probably wasn’t Michael’s best sack or tackle for loss.”
Before praising Gastineau in the lengthy thread and insisting he too belongs in the NFL Hall of Fame, Favre wrote, ” In a different game or situation, I would have made a bigger effort to avoid the sack or TFL (tackle for loss). But at no point was I thinking about hurting Gastineau. Maybe it crossed my mind to help Strahan. I didn’t think it through. That wasn’t my forte at the time.”
For his part, Tauscher who played both right tackle and guard in that game, said he understands where Gastineau is coming from. “I think he feels like it was manufactured,” Tauscher said of the sack. “You can understand why guys are frustrated and you hope at some point you can move forward.”
At least this week, the focus will turn backward, as Favre, Strahan and Gastineau, are the subject of this ESPN story revisiting a decades-old controversy.
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