Going Out On Top?

So as the news broke yesterday and my good friend Joe tells me to put it, I’ll talk a little about Michael Strahan retiring from the NFL yesterday… a move that apparently surprised his team but doesn’t surprise me one bit. He wanted to retire before the start of the season last year, skipped training camp and was surprising willing to play once the season was just around the corner. You can’t skip training camp like that back to back seasons and just expect to get away with it. He is a great player and he did not play like someone on the decline. He started 15 of 16 regular-season games last season and had 46 tackles and nine sacks. He also played a very crucial role in the Giants upset of the Patriots in last year’s Super Bowl.

But here is the question I am left asking… and it goes for Brett Favre as well. When these players are playing so well, certainly amongst the best in the league at their respective positions… why go out on such a high? I am not questioning their character or willingness to play, everyone knows Brett Favre has been my favorite player in the NFL since I started following it in 1995.

Personally, I have never been one to buy the theory of “Going Out On Top”. Why would you want to do that? You have just shown you are best at what you do, now come back and defend it to show it wasn’t a fluke. Yes, some might say that there is nothing left to prove but as an athlete, just the competitive environment should be enough. Maybe it’s just me making a big deal over nothing and it could just be the fan in me since quality athletes like this are hard to come by and you never like to see them go.

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