Getty Giants' Hall of Famer Michael Strahan knows how one of the team's brightest young stars can become great.
Michael Strahan knows a thing or two about transforming from a promising youngster into a dominant force in the NFL. Fortunately, the New York Giants’ all-time sack leader is sharing that knowledge with Kayvon Thibodeaux.
Strahan has been mentoring the player drafted fifth overall by the Giants in 2022. Thibodeaux won’t find a better teacher than Strahan, who went from a second-round pick struggling to make his mark, to a Super Bowl winner who retired with 141.5 sacks in the regular season and a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The chances of Thibodeaux treading the same path depend on his ability to “play without thinking,” according to Strahan. Speaking at a Fox press conference ahead of Super Bowl LVII (h/t Steve Serby of the New York Post), Strahan said: “I saw later in the season he was pass rushing a little more instinctively based off just being free and not thinking about the technique of it all, and that was something that I struggled with as a rookie — just trying to make sure my technique was right, instead of doing what comes naturally to you as an athlete.”
Asked whether Thibodeaux can regularly log double-digit sacks in a season, Strahan’s response was emphatic: “Oh absolutely. I think he’d be disappointed if he wasn’t a double-digit sacker.”
That’s the level of production the Giants are counting on from one of the young building blocks on the roster. So far, Thibodeaux has flashed signs of brilliance but been short on consistency and numbers.
Not unlike a young Strahan.
Michael Strahan-Style Leap the Expectation for Kayvon Thibodeaux
Strahan’s advice for Thibodeaux to simply let his natural athleticism take over comes from experience. The same lesson helped Strahan kick his career into overdrive after a sluggish start to life in the pros.
Initially, he found getting to the passer difficult after being selected 40th overall in the 1993 NFL draft. Strahan was miscast as a 3-4 defensive end for his first two seasons.
It was only when the Giants switched to a four-man line in 1995 that Strahan’s true potential became obvious. The potential turned into dominance and stardom after John Fox replaced Mike Nolan as defensive coordinator two seasons later.
From 1997 to 2005, Strahan made seven Pro Bowls, earned first-team All-Pro honors four times and twice led the league in sacks. His 22.5 quarterback takedowns in 2001 set a new NFL record and helped Strahan win Defensive Player of the Year:
Players we miss watching: Michael Strahan.
141.5 career sacks ✔️
7x Pro Bowler ✔️
4x first-team All-Pro ✔️
2001 NFL Defensive Player of the Year ✔️
Super Bowl XLII champion ✔️
That @justintuck + @OsiUmenyiora + @MichaelStrahan D-Line 🙌
(🎥 @Giants)
The years of dominance eventually took Strahan to a Lombardi Trophy. He got to lift one after the 2007 Giants upset the 18-0 New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, the site of this year’s big game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Big Blue’s bitter NFC East rival the Philadelphia Eagles.
Strahan was no passenger when the Giants won 17-14 15 years ago. Instead, he got to Tom Brady as part of a relentless pass rush that sacked the decorated signal-caller five times and stomped out the Pats’ hopes of completing a perfect season.
15 years ago! We became world champs! #SuperBowlXLII #GMEN @Giants
Winning a Super Bowl not only put the seal of approval on Strahan’s Hall of Fame credentials. It also meant he set the standard all subsequent Giants pass-rushers must meet to be considered worthy of greatness.
Thibodeaux knows the expectations and, thanks to Strahan, he knows how to meet them.
Simple Formula Can Serve Michael Strahan Heir Apparent Well
Once Strahan got going with a dominant, 14-sack campaign in ’97, his formula for success rarely changed. He was a power rusher who routinely bulled offensive tackles back into quarterbacks.
Strahan’s game was about power, but Thibodeaux’s can be about raw speed. He showed off the latter trait for a spectacular strip-sack against the Washington Commanders in Week 15.
The play was all about quickness, with Justin Penik of Talkin’ Giants noting the sack occurred in just “2.5 seconds.”
Kayvon Thibodeaux’s strip sack was 2.5 seconds, tied for the 13th quickest sack in the NFL so far this year. This wasn’t an unblocked sack. This was Kayvon showing why he was a top 5 pick in the draft with power and speed.
Keeping things simple will help Thibodeaux build on the four sacks he notched as a rookie. The 22-year-old’s indomitable temperament can also help, according to Strahan.
He told reporters how he’s impressed with Thibodeaux’s ability to remain unfazed: “He seemed to always find himself in kind of the middle of something … but he’s oblivious. He’s his own man, that’s what I love about him. He doesn’t let the opinion of other people shape who he is, he knows who he is, and that’s a hard thing for most rookies to do.”
Thibodeaux was in “the middle of something” after he sacked Nick Foles against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 17. Foles was injured on the play, and Thibodeaux’s subsequent celebration, while unrelated, caused condemnation from many, including then-Colts’ head coach Jeff Saturday.
While he expressed concern for Foles, Thibodeaux’s response to Saturday was bullish, per Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News:
Kayvon Thibodeaux, asked about Colts HC Jeff Saturday ripping his celebration:
“I don’t know who he is. So I’m not really too concerned about people who comment on me & I don’t know them.”
He says he’s paid to be a savage & sack QBs
Thibodeaux hopes Nick Foles gets better
The Giants need Thibodeaux’s swagger and aggression to be more about production than controversy. If he follows Strahan’s advice, there’s no reason No. 5 can’t dominate in his second season.