1 week Ago By Jenna Lemoncelli
Nate Boyer said he doesn’t understand why Michael Strahan is facing backlash over his body language during the national anthem on a special pre-Veterans Day broadcast on “Fox NFL Sunday” from Naval Base San Diego. Strahan was criticized for standing with his hands folded in front of him during the national anthem, while his Fox Sports co-hosts stood with their hands over their hearts among dozens of military personnel ahead of Veterans Day on Monday. Boyer, a former U.
S. Army Green Beret and ex-NFL long snapper, explained he believes people are “reaching” and searching for “something to pick at” about Strahan. “It’s kind of ridiculous to be completely honest,” Boyer told TMZ on Monday.
“First of all, Mike has a deep, deep respect for the military. He’s done a lot of work in the veteran nonprofit space. He’s a military brat.
You know, he grew up around this [Strahan’s father is a veteran]. This is part of his life. “The gesture itself, he’s standing there with his hands crossed, not disrespectfully in any way.
I just don’t understand. I don’t understand that. It feels like people are just reaching and they’re just picking at something, but it’s like I mean I’m offended by hearing that.
” Boyer — who completed tours in Iraq and Afghanistan with U.S. Army Special Forces — went on to praise Strahan for his charitable efforts, including Merging Vets & Players (MVP), a foundation to support military veterans and retired athletes.
In 2015, Boyer co-founded the organization with Fox Sports personality Jay Glazer, who’s close friends with Strahan outside of Fox Sports. “[Strahan] has supported [Merging Vets & Players] since we started in 2015 in multiple ways — not just financially or providing suits for vets that were looking to transition into professional lives and careers — but just by showing up and being there and being an advocate and speaking for us,” Boyer said. Glazer, who was standing with Strahan during the national anthem at Naval Base San Diego, also defended the former Super Bowl champ .
“I’ve just seen the criticism of [Michael Strahan],” Glazer wrote Monday on X. “Let me tell you this, I don’t know if I have a friend who is more proud of his military roots than Michael, growing up on an army base constantly talking about what he learned from his dad Major Gene Strahan and how his time there shaped him. I heard it CONSTANTLY, still do!” Strahan returned to co-host “Good Morning America” on Tuesday, after he was absent on the show the day prior.
He did not address the matter on-air. Later Tuesday, Strahan was approached outside his home by a Daily Mail reporter who asked about the anthem incident, and Strahan snapped “don’t come to my house man!” as he took the reporter’s phone and threw it in a bush. On Monday, Strahan honored his father Major Gene W.
Strahan Sr. — who he said served for 23 years in the army and was a proud member of the 82nd Airborne Division — as well as all veterans in a post on Instagram. Boyer, a former Texas product, signed with the Seahawks as a free agent after going undrafted in 2015.
He played in one preseason game before he was released by Seattle that August. Boyer went on to work in film production as a producer and director. In July 2023, he hosted Discovery Channel’s “Survive the Raft” competition series.
Boyer also co-founded 8primal, a meat company and subscription delivery service..
