Looking Back at Mike Webster: Premature Passing -- Permanent Legacy

Story by Yinzer Crazy Contributor Roger McNamara

Early Years:   Mike Webster arrived on March 18, 1952 in the small Mid-Western town of Tomahawk, WI.  A standout athlete from the outset, his playing days at nearby Rhinelander High School propelled him into the University of Wisconsin.  Standing 6’1” and weighing in at 255lbs. he was not especially large for an interior lineman, but at an early age embarked on a rigorous conditioning and weight lifting program which left him sculpted and strong. Even on the coldest and rawest game days at both College and beyond, Webster would play with shirt sleeves rolled up so that opponents were afforded a good look at his muscular arms.  Through the early 1970’s Mike was widely regarded as the finest all around offensive interior lineman in the Big 10, a conference whose branches regularly sprout line play excellence on each side of the ball.   Webster’s efforts on the field twice earned him All Conference honors.

On to the Pros: Chuck Noll displayed his customary acumen at talent identification, waiting patiently before selecting Webster in the 5th round of the 1974 player draft.  This was the Steeler “Hall of Fame” draft year --- four of its selections gained enshrinement into the Hall, Mike Webster included.  His first two seasons in a Steeler uniform were spent largely under tutorial guidance of veteran center Ray Mansfield, which proved to be another Chuck Noll creative insight.  Webster started only one game each in 1974 and 1975, but did appear in all 14 outings each year as the first two of Noll’s Super Bowl crowns were realized.  Number 52 could not be held in check much longer, and was named starting Center on the 1976 squad.  Thus began a 13 year stretch for the Black and Gold over which he appeared in 177 consecutive regular season games, 220 overall, remarkable feats for any interior lineman.  A further stamp of excellence?  Throughout his pro career Webster was not charged with yielding a single QB sack! He was without question an anchor on Super Bowl Champion teams of 1978 and 1979.  A heart for the game and a nose for the ball, he is credited with six (6) career fumble recoveries while named All-Pro a half dozen times and invited to play in nine (9) Pro Bowls.  His final two playing years --- 1989 and 1990 --- were spent with the Kansas City Chiefs, for whom he started 23 of 25 games and picked up one of those fumbles.  Many years a Steeler team captain, named to the All-Steeler 1970’s  team,  Mike Webster was properly enshrined in the Canton, OH Professional  Hall of Fame, Class of 1997.

In Retirement:  Who is to say how many snaps Webster delivered to his Quarterback teammates, college and professional combined?  Over 245 NFL games alone something in the neighborhood of 14,000 is a plausible estimate.  Many were followed immediately by an opposing middle linebacker crashing in on him, especially as many Steeler teams of his era featured a run oriented offense.  It was not long into his retirement years that Webster began to suffer from dementia, disappearing for weeks at a time from his Wife Pamela and their four children, rumbling aimlessly between Pittsburgh and Wisconsin, not infrequently sleeping in the back of a pickup truck.  Only following his September 2002 death at Age 50 --- mercifully, he passed peacefully in Pittsburgh while under the care of his Son, Garrett ---   did an autopsy reveal his affliction with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, which is to say brain deterioration thought to be caused by repeated head traumas.  It is a fairly recent discovery by the Medical community, and much is still being learned about it. Symptoms are comparable to those traditionally associated with prize fighters, but this was the first time they were connected to a football player.  One expert estimates that Webster’s repetitions on the field amounted to the equivalent of 25,000 moving vehicle road collisions.     

Legacy: As he had given so much to so many over the productive years of his life, so Webster continued to give for the betterment of many in his death.  Sobered by its premature arrival and subsequent medical analysis, coaches now react to the first inkling of head injury with player removal from the game, sent off to an ER for extensive state-of-the-art testing. The NFL has abandoned its denial of repeated blows to the head leading to brain trauma.  Research and technology have brought on significant improvements in  protective helmets. The League has settled  in courts with payments to the estates of numerous retirees, Webster’s included. 

May he rest in Eternal Peace.