Michael Strahan responds to criticism of his Chris Johnson interview: ‘I hate when people do this’
Michael Strahan responds to criticism of his Chris Johnson interview: ‘I hate when people do this’
Raechal ShewfeltWed, July 29, 2026 at 9:52 PM UTC
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Michael Strahan during his Chris Johnson interviewCredit: Good Morning America/YouTubeKey Points -
Michael Strahan was criticized for his interview last month of retired NFL player Chris Johnson.
Johnson appeared on Good Morning America to disclose that he’s been diagnosed with ALS, which left some people arguing he should have said more about the connection between the disease and football.
Strahan said on the Dan Patrick Show that it was Johnson’s moment alone.
Michael Strahan knows people are slamming him for his interview with retired NFL star Chris Johnson, who’s been diagnosed with ALS. But he stands by it.
Asked why he hadn’t asked Johnson whether he thought his disease was caused by his time on the field, Strahan was clear: “Well, I had that — I actually thought about that, because I saw everyone said, ‘Well you should have asked this, you should have asked that,’” Strahan explained Tuesday on the Dan Patrick Show. “Well, you should have got the interview. How about that? That’s one thing.”
The Good Morning America co-anchor said that the interview, which aired June 29, had a different purpose.
“Two, that was Chris’ moment for Chris to share the story which Chris wanted to share,” said Strahan, who himself played in the NFL from 1993 to 2008. “And when I got the call that Chris wanted to share that he has, you know, ALS, that was the story.”
Michael Strahan at an NFL event in FebruaryCredit: Michael Loccisano/Getty
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As the NFL Hall of Famer saw it, the subject was Johnson and Johnson alone.
“It wasn’t for me to try to grandstand, which — I hate when people do this, Dan,” Strahan said. “As an interviewer, our job is to deliver information. I’m not trying to get a bigger name for myself by putting somebody else in an uncomfortable position. I was there as a service to Chris, for what Chris wanted people to understand and know about his life and where he was now.”
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He added, “I was not there to make a story about myself or to get a big headline — that’s what it wasn’t about. The headlines were about Chris, where they needed to be.”
Strahan noted that he had broached the topic of sports.
“I did ask Chris about football, how the NFL has been supportive and all those things. He has twin boys who play football right now,” Strahan said. “So there are so many things that people don’t know but a few were critical of, but overall I’m very proud of what we did there at ABC in bringing that story.”
Johnson, a 40-year-old former running back for the Arizona Cardinals, told Strahan that he had been diagnosed at 39.
“There’s no history of ALS in my family,” Johnson said on GMA. “My doctors believe my case is what’s called sporadic ALS, which is actually how the vast majority of ALS cases happen.”
Watch the full conversation above.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
