Pro Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre and New York Jets legend Mark Gastineau had a tense confrontation at a 2023 event that will be shown in an upcoming ESPN “30 for 30” documentary.
Per ESPN’s Rich Cimini, the conflict took place at a memorabilia show in Chicago last year. Cameras at the event captured the encounter between the two NFL legends, and it will be featured on “The New York Sack Exchange” 30 for 30 documentary which airs Friday.
Here’s the important context: Gastineau previously held the single-season sack record of 22 in 1984. Michael Strahan of the New York Giants broke the sack record in Week 17 of the 2001 season by sacking Favre, then a member of the Packers.
In the exchange, Brett Favre extends his hand to Gastineau, who accuses the three-time MVP of falling down to let Strahan sack him. The ex-Jets star tell Favre that he will “get my sack back”, to which Favre says “You would probably hurt me.”
Gastineau says he doesn’t care and tells Favre, “You hurt me…you really hurt me. You hurt me Brett.” One of the staff members at the event then ends the confrontation by telling Favre they must return to business.
22 years after losing the NFL single-season sack record, Mark Gastineau confronted Brett Favre for ‘taking a dive’ on the record-breaking play.
— ESPN (@espn) December 10, 2024
Catch the latest @30for30, 'The New York Sack Exchange,' on ESPN and ESPN+ starting Dec. 13. pic.twitter.com/Oz5KRwVcy7
Also Read: Who Is Deanna Favre? Meet Brett Favre’s High School Sweetheart And Basketball Star Wife
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In case you’re curious, here is the clip of Strahan sacking Favre to break the record. TJ Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers would tie Strahan’s record in Week 18 of the 2021 campaign:
There’s no way this guy actually thinks Brett Favre was going to be able to dodge Michael Strahan to protect his sack record.😭 https://t.co/ntNn5NtcIy pic.twitter.com/zZsnZRbdeC
— Eazy (@SpeakEZsports_) December 11, 2024
Brett Favre Addresses The Matter On X
After the video was released, Brett Favre took to X/Twitter and explained the confrontation in a thread.
Favre denied going down on purpose for Strahan and defended Gastineau for merely wanting to get “his frustration off his chest.” Favre said it was “a private moment” that shouldn’t have been filmed or shown to the public.
Back in 2002, when Michael Strahan sacked me at the end of a game that we had wrapped up, I was in no way trying to hurt Mark Gastineau.
— Brett Favre (@BrettFavre) December 11, 2024
I was trying to close out a game and squeeze the last bit of fun out of a hard-fought game.
(2)
In a different game or situation, I would have made a bigger effort to avoid the sack or TFL.
— Brett Favre (@BrettFavre) December 11, 2024
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.
I just wanted to have…
There was no malice on my part.
— Brett Favre (@BrettFavre) December 11, 2024
Mark was a great player.
My understanding is he’s a great guy and a fun teammate, a guy who played with the kind of joy and passion I tried to mimic. I understand his frustration, but I’m not his enemy.
A while back, he saw me at a card show…
Mark definitely left an indelible mark on the game.
— Brett Favre (@BrettFavre) December 11, 2024
I hope this controversy brings attention to just how great Mark Gastineau was.
He belongs in Canton.
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Brett.
Even if Gastineau believes that Favre went down on purpose, it’s a moot point. If Strahan didn’t get that record-breaking sack, Watt would be all alone in the record books anyway.
