“I can get more of everything in life… except time.” In 2024, Michael Strahan gave Forbes a rare signal that the end of an era might be subtly approaching. But, before becoming the versatile media powerhouse—NFL Hall of Famer, co-anchor of Good Morning America, host of the $100,000 Pyramid game show, and FOX NFL Sunday’s cool-headed glue—he was merely a rookie in a suit, dealing with the veteran chaos of Terry Bradshaw discussing farm animals on live television.

Strahan revealed that eye-opening incident on a recent episode of Under the Umbrellas, a casual yet insightful daily series presented by Kira K. Dixon. “For me, I was going to the biggest football show on television for the last 30 years. Fox NFL Sunday. And I’m sitting there and I’m watching Terry, Howie, Jimmy, and Kurt. and we do rehearsals and I’m like ‘Oh, I got this, I crushed that rehearsal.'” Michael Strahan said. “But when that camera light came on, those guys just lit up. And Terry’s talking about farm animals, and I’m sitting there thinking—wait, I thought the show was about football?” Nope. Not at all.

It was his first taste of reality. The kind that comes from a Hall of Fame QB rambling about goats on national television, rather than reading from a teleprompter. Turns out, FOX NFL Sunday is more than just a sporting event. It’s performance art. Controlled chaos. Just enough entertainment to pass for football analysis. And Strahan, to his credit, got the message. Fast. “This is escapism,” he said. “People sit in meetings all week. They don’t want another one on Sunday. Our show is about entertainment.” So he adapted. Most new broadcasters enter the industry trying to sound intelligent. But when Strahan left that studio, he realised he wanted to be something completely different: relatable. Entertaining. Real.

He became just that throughout the years, appearing on screen with Bradshaw, Howie Long, Jimmy Johnson, and now Rob Gronkowski and Tom Brady. Terry Bradshaw—farm animal ramblings and all—was the loudest, strangest, and most insightful lecturer he could have hoped for when FOX NFL Sunday turned into his classroom.

According to Michael Strahan, he is a student of the people next to me. He put it best himself: “Every day I pay attention. Because there’s always something you can figure out to do better.” That lesson started on the FOX set. Let’s be clear, though: this isn’t the place for humblebrags. This is real. The man who used to scare quarterbacks turned into a stealthy behind-the-scenes note-taker who learnt from a number of football legends that statistics don’t win Sunday shows. Personality wins them over. But it didn’t end there.

Michael Strahan gets candid about GMA co-hosts

If FOX served as his entertainment crash course, Good Morning America served as his in-depth exploration of hustle, humanity, and the heart. And, Strahan entered the morning TV industry with the same student mindset. “I’ve learned from everyone I’ve ever worked with,” he said. “From those guys at FOX to Kelly Ripa to Robin and George.”

And it’s obvious. Michael Strahan connects on GMA rather than only sitting at his desk. He handles every moment as if it were important, more like personal, whether it’s a breaking news report or a feature about rescued dogs. He excels in a room full of seasoned journalists because of the same flexibility that allowed him to adjust to Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck on the Giants’ defensive line.

“When I was a top player and Osi or Tuck showed up… if I was stubborn, I wouldn’t have tried new things. But I had to evolve.” That’s the word with Strahan—evolve. Not reinvent. Not fake. Just grow, layer by layer, from a football player to a host to a cultural mainstay. And what ties it all together is his willingness to listen to his co-hosts, his crew, his fans, and yes, even to Terry Bradshaw when he’s ranting about a chicken named Earl.

So, Strahan’s thoughts on Under the Umbrellas served as a reminder of how he operates: constant observation and adaptation. Whether it was Terry Bradshaw teaching him that football television is actually performance art, or his GMA co-hosts showing him new layers of connection and curiosity, Strahan made one thing clear—he’s still learning.