Editing Mike Webster (section)

=== Illness ===
After death, Webster was diagnosed with [[chronic traumatic encephalopathy]] (CTE), a neurodegenerative disease.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/news/story?id=3864644 |title=Researchers: Late NFL player had degenerative brain condition - ESPN<!-- Bot generated title --> |date=January 27, 2009 |access-date=June 22, 2009 |archive-date=February 20, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090220124903/http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3864644 |url-status=live }}</ref> Webster was the first former NFL player diagnosed with CTE. Dr. [[Bennet Omalu]], a [[forensic pathology|forensic]] [[neuropathologist]], examined tissue from Webster and eight other NFL players and determined they all showed the kind of brain damage previously seen in people with [[Alzheimer's disease]] or [[dementia]], as well as in some retired boxers.<ref name="autopsy"/> Webster's brain resembled those of boxers with "dementia pugilistica", also known as "punch-drunk syndrome".<ref name="CTE"/><ref>{{cite magazine|last=Laskas|first=Jeanne Marie|title=Game Brain: Football Players and Concussions|url=https://www.gq.com/story/nfl-players-brain-dementia-study-memory-concussions|magazine=GQ|date=September 15, 2009|access-date=May 7, 2018|archive-date=November 11, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151111053002/http://www.gq.com/story/nfl-players-brain-dementia-study-memory-concussions|url-status=live}}</ref> Omalu's findings were largely ignored by the NFL until [[Cincinnati Bengals]] wide receiver [[Chris Henry (wide receiver)|Chris Henry]] was diagnosed with CTE shortly after his death at age 26 in 2009.<ref>[https://www.espn.com/espn/commentary/news/story?page=hoiward/100629 Chris Henry data sound football alarm], ESPN. com, Johnette Howard, June 29, 2010.</ref> Webster's son Garrett now serves as the administrator to the Brain Injury Research Institute in Pittsburgh, which is dedicated to encouraging individuals who have had head trauma to donate their brains after death as well as being an advocate to players who have similar conditions that his father had.<ref name="CTE"/>

It has been speculated that Webster's ailments were due to wear and tear sustained over his playing career; some doctors estimated he had been in the equivalent of "25,000 automobile crashes" in over 25 years of playing football at the high school, college and professional levels. His wife Pamela stated years later that she felt that she caused Webster's change in personality in the years before his death and placed guilt on herself over her decision to divorce Webster, until discovering after his death about the CTE diagnosis.<ref name="CTE"/> Webster played during an era when protective equipment (especially helmets) was inferior, and head injuries were considered part of the game of football.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}} At the time of his death, Webster was addicted to prescription medication.<ref name="Engber Concussion criticism">{{cite journal|last1=Engber|first1=Daniel|title=Concussion Lies|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2015/12/the_truth_about_will_smith_s_concussion_and_bennet_omalu.html|journal=Slate|date=December 21, 2015 |publisher=The Slate Group|access-date=December 26, 2015|archive-date=December 25, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151225174843/http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/sports_nut/2015/12/the_truth_about_will_smith_s_concussion_and_bennet_omalu.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Nicknamed "Iron Mike", Webster's reputation for durability led him to play even through injuries. So strong was Webster that he was one of eight players that participated in a "Strongest Man in Football" competition that aired on CBS in 1980. While [[anabolic steroids]] were considered legal to use during the time of Webster's career, he never publicly stated that he ever used steroids.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ESPNMAG.com - Big Night |url=https://www.espn.com/magazine/vol6no03strongmen.html |access-date=2025-01-17 |website=www.espn.com}}</ref> His struggle with mental illness, as a result of CTE, at the end of his life was depicted in the 2015 film ''[[Concussion (2015 film)|Concussion]]''. Webster was portrayed by [[David Morse (actor)|David Morse]] and Dr. [[Bennet Omalu]] was portrayed by [[Will Smith]].  He is one of at least 345 [[List of NFL players with chronic traumatic encephalopathy|NFL players to be diagnosed after death]] with this disease, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.<ref>{{cite news |title=The driving force behind Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) |website=Concussion Legacy Foundation |url=https://concussionfoundation.org/cte-resources/subconcussive-impacts |access-date=July 2, 2023 |archive-date=July 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230702123543/https://concussionfoundation.org/cte-resources/subconcussive-impacts |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Ken Belson and Benjamin Mueller |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/20/sports/football/cte-study-concussions-brain-tackle.html |title=Collective Force of Head Hits, Not Just the Number of Them, Increases Odds of C.T.E. The largest study of chronic traumatic encephalopathy to date found that the cumulative force of head hits absorbed by players in their careers is the best predictor of future brain disease. |work= [[The New York Times]] |date=June 20, 2023 |access-date=July 2, 2023 }}</ref>