Former New York Jets defensive end Mark Gastineau’s 20-plus year grudge against Brett Favre is featured in an upcoming ESPN documentary about “The New York Sack Exchange,” the dominant defensive line of the 1980s that included Gastineau, Marty Lyons, Joe Klecko and the late Abdul Salam. .
Gastineau was seen confronting Favre at a sports memorabilia show in Chicago last year and accused of giving New York Giants pass rusher Michael Strahan an easy sack in January 2002 to break Gastineau’s single-season NFL record.
Favre and Gastineau shook hands and Favre mentioned how the two had met in the past.
“Yes, exactly—when you fell down [Strahan]Gastineau said, “I’m going to get my sack back. I’m going to get my sack back, mate.”
Shocked, Favre replied, “You’re probably going to hit me,” to which Gastineau shot back, “Well, I don’t care. You hit me. You hit me! You hear me?”
“Yeah, I’m listening,” Favre said.
“You really hit me. You really hit me, Brett,” Gastineau said as Favre was led away by one of his handlers.
Gastineau’s sentiment on the sack record in 2020 has changed
Gastineau came onto the field at Giants Stadium in 2002 to congratulate Strahan on breaking the record. But in February 2020, he admitted to ESPN’s Rich Cimini that he believed Favre was not happy with a dive that day.
“It’s my record, and I want it to be known that it’s my record,” Gastineau said nearly five years ago. “I’m not going to say, ‘I don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings.’ This is my record… being good and playing well, but it’s not real, I think there’s something wrong.
In response to accusations that he gave Strahan an easy sack, Favre said after that game in 2002, “We didn’t lay down for him.”
“Someone will tell you that Brett Favre took a dive,” Gastineau said in the documentary.
Recently, Gastineau told Cimini that he waited too long to confront Favre and that he believed Strahan and Favre conspired together.
“I wanted to let him know it was a sack of garbage,” Gastineau said. “I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time – many, many years. I have another guy to go to.”
Since Strahan’s 22 1/2 sacks were recorded by Gastineau, the record was matched by TJ Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021. Jared Allen (2011) and Justin Houston (2014) each tied Gastineau with 22 sacks in a season. .
Gastineau’s frustration with how he missed the sack record nearly 23 years ago may be due to his not being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Despite being the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1982, a four-time first-team All-Pro, five-time Pro Bowler and two-time NFL sack leader who finished with 107.5 sacks in his career, Gastineau never reached the mark. Semifinal round in Hall of Fame voting.
