Strahan claims ‘Cowboys and Jimmy Johnson lied’ before he was drafted by Giants

MICHEAL Strahan has opened up on the fear he felt joining the New York Giants as a rookie – after being snubbed by the Dallas Cowboys.

The seven-time Pro Bowler was selected as the 40th overall pick by the Giants in 1993.

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Strahan would go on to become a legend with the franchise, spending 15 years in New Jersey and winning a Super Bowl title in his final season.

In the run-up to draft night 31 years ago, the young defensive end out of Texas Southern was courted by the Cowboys.

Dallas was then coached by Strahan’s future Fox NFL Sunday colleague Jimmy Johnson.

AStrahan revealed in a tell-all interview with Graham Bensinger that Johnson promised him he’d be a Cowboy.

“They lied,” the NFL Hall of Famer shouted, with a grin.

“[Jimmy Johnson] lied!” he added when pressed by Bensinger.

The Cowboys unexpectedly traded down in the draft, with Strahan dropping into the second round.

“Jimmy promised he was going to draft me to the Cowboys,” Strahan told Tom Brady on his podcast Let’s Go last year, per Sportskeeda.

“I met Troy Aikman and Michael Irvin and all these guys and he’s like, ‘Draft day deals. We’re gonna draft him in the first round, but we want to do a draft day deal. We don’t want any holdout.'”

“I’m sitting in my uncle’s living room, eating our food with a briefcase – I’m like, ‘My contract is in that briefcase. I’m going to be a Cowboy.’

“Then he gets a call, and they trade down the pick.

“And I say to Jimmy, ‘You lied. You promised me.’

“He said, ‘Well you know I thought you were gonna drop and I can get you a lot lower, plus I didn’t know you were gonna be any good.'”

Strahan ended up with the Giants and initially got off to a difficult start in a “scary” New York.

Michael Strahan’s NFL career

Michael Strahan is one of the most recognizable faces on television.

But he came into his media career off the back of a hugely successful stint in the NFL.

Strahan spent 14 years all with the New York Giants from 1993 to 2007.

He was a seven-time Pro Bowler and helped them win the Super Bowl in 2007 – ending the New England Patriots’ hopes of a perfect season.

Strahan was also a two-time NFL sacks leader and also won Defensive Player of the Year.

The ex-Giants star set the single-season sack record with 22.5 in 2001 – a feat which was matched by J.J. Watt exactly 20 years later.

He is one of the best defensive stars to have ever played the game – finishing with 141.5 career sacks and 854 tackles.

“I was scared to death,” Strahan told Bensinger.

“I remember flying into Newark and it looked so industrial. So rough and tumble.

“I remember ending up in the city and being in a car. The taxis are driving crazy, the horns, there are people everywhere.

“I’d lived in Houston, I’d lived in Germany. After I left college I felt I’d got used to things, I can keep up with this.

“Then I come to New York. And it was on hyperdrive.

“I’d just sit in my hotel room, wait until they sent someone to pick me up to take me where I needed to go.”

Following a tough rookie season, Strahan broke through as a starter in 1994.

He would spend 15 years with the Giants, making 854 combined tackles and forcing 24 fumbles.

Since retiring, Strahan has carved out a successful career as a sports analyst and joined Johnson on Fox NFL Sunday in 2008.

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