Photo: Getty Images
FOX Sports analyst Michael Strahan finally addressed apparent online backlash for how he was standing during the NFL on FOX's special Veterans Day broadcast from Naval Base San Diego on Sunday (November 10).
Strahan, 52, a Pro Football Hall of Famer who also hosts the ABC morning news show Good Morning America, was seen with his hands in front of him in an interlocked position while his colleagues all had their hands over their hearts during the playing of the national anthem, as shown in a clip shared by the NFL on FOX X account, which yielded a variety of responses. The NFL legend addressed the incident in an Instagram reel shared on Tuesday (November 12) hours after a video shared by Daily Mail showed him telling a reporter "don't come to my house" and pushing a camera away after being questioned on the street about the incident.
Strahan said he was "not proud" of the way he handled the interaction, but felt he needed to "protect" his family and home before focusing on the national anthem controversy.
“I have nothing to protest, I have no statement to be made,” Strahan said on Instagram. "The only statement that should be made that I want to make is I love the military, I’ve always loved the military and I will always love the military. I do so many programs to help veterans and soldiers."
"I grew up on a military base with a father who was a major in the army. My brother, my sister, my cousins, they all served in the military — I’m a military brat," said Strahan, the son of late former Army Major Gene W. Strahan Sr.
“And so the fact of somebody saying that, you know, I’m unpatriotic, couldn’t be any further from the truth.”
Strahan was absent from Good Morning America Monday and made his return Tuesday morning, referencing a moment during Monday Night Football in which a soldier was reunited with his family on Veterans Day, but opting not to address the incident on Sunday. The Pro Football Hall of Famer also shared a post tributing his father and other veterans on his Instagram story Monday.
"Thank you to all the veterans and active service members who courageously risk their lives to protect us every day," Strahan wrote, along with a photo of his father. "Your selfless service is beyond measure.
"This is my hero, it is also my father, Maj. Gene W. Strahan Sr. He served for 23 years in the army and was a proud member of the 82nd Airborne Division.
"Just as I honor my father, I keep all of you in my thoughts each and every day as we would not have the safety and freedoms we cherish without you. Thank you."