Michael Strahan hurt Terry Bradshaw’s feelings with his jibe on FOX NFL Sunday (Image: FOX NFL Sunday)

Michael Strahan left Terry Bradshaw feeling emotional within the first minute of FOX NFL Sunday.

The Week 12 edition of FOX NFL Sunday kicked off with artist Michael Buble, who lent his voice to the opening credits following the release of his new Christmas song. FOX host Curt Menefee then took the reins, which segued into Strahan perhaps overstepping the mark as he sought to get a laugh out of the rest of the crew.

“Thanks to five-time Grammy Award winner Michael Buble for opening the show,” said Menefee. “His new song ‘Maybe This Christmas’ with country star Carly Pearce is out right now. As we welcome in Terry, Howie, Michael, and Jimmy [Johnson]… they didn’t ask you [Bradshaw] to sing us a country song?”

Bradshaw, 76, shared his disappointment with analyst Howie Long, responding: “Well I told them I would, but only with Howie, and that was kind of the deal.” Long suggested what America really needs is a Bradshaw Christmas album, which the NFL icon refuted.

The Mirror reported former New York Giants veteran Strahan, 53, then interjected with: “Can I just say? That was 10 seconds of our lives we can never get back.”

But Bradshaw hit back at Strahan: “Now Michael, that hurt my feelings.” His colleague offered an apology for his cutting remark, but karma struck as Menefee shifted focus to the NFL’s underperforming New York teams and quipped: “Speaking of, Michael, you may want to cover your ears for this next segment.”

Strahan spent his entire 15-season NFL career with the New York Giants (Image: (Photo by Brian Ach/WireImage))
Strahan spent his entire 15-season NFL career with the Giants after he was picked in the second round of the 1993 NFL Draft, culminating in a Super Bowl win in his farewell campaign in 2007. The Giants clinched another Super Bowl victory four years later when Eli Manning led them to triumph over Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.

Yet the franchise is now struggling through a dismal 100th anniversary season, falling to 2-9 on Sunday after a 30-7 defeat at home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The team fielded second-year quarterback Tommy DeVito against the Bucs following their decision to let go of Daniel Jones earlier in the week.

Jones had failed to prove his value despite signing a hefty four-year, $160million extension in 2023. Opting not to wait until season’s end to explore other opportunities, the Giants acquiesced when Jones asked for an immediate release.

Daniel Jones was released by the Giants this week – but it didn’t help their results on the field (Image: F. Noever/FC Bayern via Getty Images)
Tensions rose after Sunday’s loss – their sixth in a row – when rookie receiver Malik Nabers insisted their losing streak wasn’t due to the quarterback change. And his comments appeared to hint the team had issues with the coaching instead.

“It ain’t the quarterback,” said Nabers declared in the Giants locker room. “Same outcome when we had DJ [Daniel Jones] at quarterback. It ain’t the quarterback.” When probed about whether play-calling was to blame, Nabers responded: “I don’t know.”