It’s been 19 years since former Giants great Michael Strahan earned the record of 22.5 sacks in 2001 when he sacked Brett Favre, whom many feel took a dive on the play.
Mark Gastineau wants his sack record back and he’s finally ready to speak out about it.
“It’s my record, and I want it to be known that it’s my record,” Gastineau told ESPN on Monday in a phone interview. “I’m not going to say, ‘I don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings.’ It’s my record.”
“Being nice and being a good sport, that’s good, but it’s not real,” Gastineau said. “In fact, I’m kind of a liar in a way. I feel like there’s just something wrong.
“This is on my head all the time. It goes through my head all the time. I want to clear things up.”
The 63-year-old had been quiet about it all these years, even showing up and congratulating Strahan on the field in 2001. He has had enough.
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral NFL stories via Google! Follow Us
“It’s a good record and it took me a long time to get that,” he said. “It took a lot of work, a lot of work to get that record. So many years I worked my butt off to get it, and I finally got it, and it shouldn’t have been cheapened like it was. It’s like a tarnished record.”
Gastineau’s frustrations stem from him wanting to see his mark legitimately broken so there is no more question about who the rightful owner is.
“I just want to be recognized for the record,” Gastineau said. “You wouldn’t want your son getting a record like that. I don’t think it’s good for the NFL. It was never good for the NFL, and I’m surprised the NFL didn’t step in.”
To be fair, even if the NFL stepped in right now, it still wouldn’t be Gasinteau’s record alone since Vikings defensive end Jared Allen racked up 22.0 sacks in 2011 and Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston matched that total three years later.
