Michael Strahan, former super-bowl defensive end for the New York Giants and seven-time Pro Bowl selection, is the author for my summer reading. His book, Inside the Helmet: My Life as a Sunday Afternoon Warrior, is a collection of memoirs, stories, strategies, and "inside tips" on everything about being an NFL superstar such as himself.
Strahan begins by explaining the environment right before a game, the moment when both teams stare each other down while the national anthem is played. Sure, it seems like they are focused on their patriotic duty of the anthem, but the only thing on their minds is the faces of the opponents on the other side of the sideline.
He then breaks down everything that leads up to that particular moment on game day. From the meetings, to the player-coach relationship, the player-player relationship, fights, pranks, strategy and communication, among other things. Each chapter discusses a different topic, so boredom doesn't occur will reading this piece.
One part of the game that Strahan discusses is the "business" side of pro football. Players and the franchises they work for often don't cooperate, and they say "money talks". Well, in this case, it does. If a player doesn't like the contract they're offered, they'll just request a trade or go find another franchise that's willing to pay top dollar for a player that's capable of bringing a Lombardi trophy back with them from the Super Bowl. So, teams do the best they possibly can to ensure that all the players on their roster, especially those who have acquired "superstar" status, such as Brett Favre or Ray Lewis (why do you think the Vikings are paying Favre $20M to play this year?!).
I love Strahan's style in this book. It's laid-back to the point where you don't struggle to grasp what he's trying to say from reading one sentence, yet still sophisticated enough to the point where there are words in this book that are on my vocab list. Strahan uses a lot of expressions and sayings while recollecting his stories and memoirs, that, if you have ever heard Michael Strahan talk, you can hear him saying inside your head. The expressions are just him. Only he could say these words like him. He also gives a very vivid picture of the event he's attempting to explain, yet he doesn't rant off onto a tangent on the descriptions that lead you away from the point of the whole thing.
I would recommend this book to any NFL fan, or anyone who wants a look "inside the helmet" (pun intended) of the life of a pro athlete. Through the stories, explanations, strategies, and sayings, Michael Strahan really captures the essence of what it's like to be an NFL superstar in my summer reading, his book Inside the Helmet: My Life as a Sunday Afternoon Warrior.
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