Every rookie gets a ‘welcome to the NFL’ moment. For Greg Olsen, it came in the form of a 6’5″, 255-pound future Hall of Famer named Michael Strahan, and the encounter was so jarring it nearly changed his career trajectory.

It goes back to ‘07, Olsen’s debut season with the Chicago Bears. It was a critical moment in the game, and all Chicago needed was a few yards for a score. They might even have succeeded if only the opposing DE, Strahan, hadn’t intervened. 

“I don’t know if he was in a four-point stance, but it felt like he was in an eight-point stance,” Olsen recounted on the New Heights podcast. “And he was playing six technique, right? So he was on my head. The worst. And like, you go too far inside, and he just caves you down, you stay on his outside shoulder, and he just presses you back.”

But Olsen wasn’t among those who caved easily. He went in with “everything [he] got” energy, but against the Hall of Famer, everything wasn’t enough. With Strahan positioned directly over his head, Olsen was left tiptoing on every snap. If he shaded too far inside, his distant FOX colleague would cave him down into the dirt. And that wasn’t the way he planned to end the night. 

“He takes me into the full-back into the backside, pulling guard. And I was like, I ran off the field,” Olsen added. “Yeah, I’m like, guard, I don’t care if you dislocate my elbow. You got to swab this thing, brother.”

That was his “Welcome to the NFL” moment, as he hilariously shared with Jason and Travis Kelce. 

In the later years of his career, he learned that valor had its limits against players like Strahan. He became much more protective of his limbs, realizing that if he was going to break an arm, it at least had to be for “downfield,” rather than short yardage run. 

That philosophy worked well for him as he was never sidelined with a broken arm in his 14-year career in the league. 

Is Greg Olsen seeking a career change? 

After an illustrious career, he didn’t push too far and hopped into the broadcasting booth for FOX. Impressed by his playcalling, the network promoted him to the No. 1 football booth in his first season. Today, he stands with two Sports Emmys and the most beloved name among fans. Yet, something is lacking. 

If he receives a call from an NFL team tomorrow, he would jump right into it. Given the recent trend, started by Olsen’s professional rival and colleague, Tom Brady, then followed by CBS’s Matt Ryan and Troy Aikman, Olsen, too, believes he can run a team. 

“There’s no question in my mind that I could do it. And I think I could do it well,” he said on ​​The Schrager Hour. “All those guys you just mentioned, I think teams would be more than thrilled to have a part of their team.”

He clarified that a legendary playing career doesn’t necessarily guarantee success in a front-office suit. But the job does require a certain “range of skills” that exists independently of one’s Hall of Fame resume. If one asks him, he finds the prospect of executing a team-building vision “thrilling.” Perhaps, teams might ring. 

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