Examining the grandiose words of Simeon Rice

By Connor Byrne  |   Sunday, August 06, 2006  |  Comments( 3 )

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Simeon Rice has recently come under a firestorm of scrutiny for comments regarding his status as one of the game's great pass rushers.

Specifically, Rice's comments on Michael Strahan, a surefire future Hall of Famer, irritated many.

"Year in and year out, Michael Strahan is a great player. There's no disrespect to Mike. ... I give him the ultimate, ultimate love. But he's still not me."

In his 13-year career, Strahan has always been the New York Giants' defensive stalwart. The 34-year-old has 129 ½ career sacks and he's still going strong, as he piled up 11 ½ last year. The 255-pounder also holds the league's single-season sack record. In 2001, he surpassed former New York Jets great Mark Gastineau with 22 ½ sacks, immortalizing himself among the greatest ends in NFL history.

Meanwhile, Rice, a 10-year veteran, already has 119 sacks in his career. The ex-Arizona Cardinal has truly come into his own the last few seasons. Since the beginning of the 2002 season, he's accumulated 56 ½ sacks, helping make Tampa's defense a force to be reckoned with.

Although Rice is likely on pace to finish his career with more quarterback takedowns than Strahan, it doesn't necessarily make him a better player.

Rice has been aided throughout his career by legitimately great defensive companions like John Lynch, Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks and Anthony McFarland, while Strahan has rarely had a truly top-level defender to call his teammate. Strahan's fellow Giant end, Osi Umenyiora, is finally becoming a dominant threat up front, and he's certainly one of the first to accompany Strahan in his baker's dozen of pro years.

"I'm the best in the game. They don't want to respect it. They don't like it. ... But I'm what Bruce Smith and Reggie White passed the torch to," said Rice, a three-time Pro Bowler.

Before comparing himself to the likes of Strahan, White and Smith, the 32-year-old must recognize the aid he's received from teammates over his career. Either way, he has light-years to go before catching White and Smith, the two greatest and most prolific rushers in the history of the game.

As for the final vote, Strahan deserves more recognition than Rice. Both are all-time greats, but Strahan's the better of the two. Perhaps the pair can decide in Canton someday.

--Connor J. Byrne can be reached at cbyrne@realfootball365.com

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