Infuriated Michael Strahan hurls reporter's phone after being asked about National Anthem controversy

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA: Fox Sports NFL analyst and former Giants player Michael Strahan snapped at a Daily Mail reporter when asked to comment on the uproar over the National Anthem controversy. 

The Super Bowl champion faced intense backlash for not placing his hand over his heart during the National Anthem while hosting 'NFL on Fox' at Naval Base San Diego ahead of Veterans Day. Many thought his gesture was disrespectful to the soldiers and diminished the event's patriotic meaning. 

Michael Strahan hurls a reporter's phone into a bush after being asked about the National Anthem controversy

When a reporter approached him to get his opinion on the matter on Tuesday, November 12, while he was returning home from co-hosting ABC's 'Good Morning America', Michael Strahan grabbed their phone and exclaimed, "Don't come to my house, man!"

He then threw the phone into a nearby shrub before entering his $20 million apartment with his longtime girlfriend Kayla Quick. Being questioned over the Fox Sports anthem incident clearly did not sit well with Strahan.

Strahan, whose father is a retired Army Major and grew up on an army setup, did not appear on 'Good Morning America' on Monday, November 11, following the controversy.

He returned to ABC's Manhattan studios on Tuesday morning, but he again did not address the topic during any of the show's two-hour runtime. 

On Veterans Day, he did share a tribute to his father and other military personnel on social media.

Nate Boyer asserts Michael Strahan was not being 'disrespectful'

Calling Strahan's usual gestures during the National Anthem "unpatriotic", many incensed NFL fans demanded that Fox Sports fire him.

Meanwhile, former NFL player Nate Boyer, who spent six years and many tours with the US Army in Afghanistan and Iraq, claimed that Michael Strahan's position was not disrespectful "in any way."

Regarding the controversy, the former Seattle Seahawks long snapper told TMZ, "It’s kind of ridiculous to be completely honest."

Boyer said, "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," added the 43-year-old.

The US Army Green Beret turned NFL player remarked, "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."

A source told Daily Mail that Strahan's "peers have his back and understand that he wasn't making the moment about himself."

They added, "There isn't going to be any type of punishment or fine going Michael's way. He may address it, but he is weighing his options because he never thought this would have ever been a thing."