Young Lawyers Journal
Issue 3
Sports in the courts: "Broken"
by Marc A. D’Antonio, Esq. and Jared D. Correia, Esq.
Mike Webster was at the center of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 1970’s NFL dynasty. From 1974 to 1979 the Steelers won four Super Bowls, winning back-to-back championships at the beginning and end of the frame. Webster anchored the other side of the Steel Curtain, and is, arguably, the best center to ever play in the National Football League. Webster played fifteen years for the Steelers, and then two years for the Kansas City Chiefs, near the end of his career. “Iron Mike” was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997. Mike Webster lived the sort of life that makes grown men wear football jerseys in order to live vicariously through their heroes.
But, all the manufactured glories and trappings that made up Mike Webster’s career in the NFL merely served to disguise the true nature of the case: that the NFL was killing him.
The football center snaps the ball to the quarterback. The process involves the passing of the ball through the center’s legs, the ball ultimately to be placed into the quarterback’s hands, as the quarterback reaches down for it. The center is the only player on the football field who looks down as the play begins. This allows the defensive players rushing the quarterback the chance to gain an invaluable split second advantage in timing over the center. It makes the skill of the center even more impressive, in that he has the ability to recover and block the defender, even with the added movement (to look up) he must make. Despite the rapidity of the center’s recovery, he cannot turn time back. And, the trenches in the NFL are not merely the display of brainless oxen pushing against each other. Centers often called offensive plays and formations.1 And, defensive linemen had many tricks to tamper with the center’s balance, and to take advantage of the extra time granted them. The NFL of the 1970s was a much rougher league than the prevailing product. There were not as many rules to assure, as best as possible, the well-being of the players, and the protective equipment then used pales in comparisons of quality to what is used today. One of the moves that defensive linemen favored in Webster’s era was the “head slap” (brought into vogue by the Rams’ Deacon Jones), which was used even after it was officially outlawed by the league. Not much description is needed beyond the name of the maneuver. The defensive lineman would pound the head of the blocker as hard as he could with arm and forearm, in order to stun the offensive linemen, in an attempt to rush past him. Centers were most vulnerable to this maneuver. And, it was this maneuver, and others like it, that took the toll on Mike Webster’s mind.
So, it was that Mike Webster looked up, somewhere in the time of his retirement from football, lost, and unable to find his way home. He would call friends and family when he was just couldn’t remember where to go, and he would whisper an apologetic description of where he might be: “All I see is trees.”
Medical professionals believe that Webster, although never medically treated for concussions, or post-concussion syndrome, suffered many undiagnosed concussions during his career. When Webster retired, he couldn’t keep a job, and was plagued by unusual behavior, beyond his control. Although he had established fairly significant savings, based on his NFL earnings, he frittered it all away in bad business deal after bad business deal. He couldn’t think straight. After leaving a coaching job with the Chiefs, Webster never worked steadily again, and became homeless, often sleeping in his car or in train stations and a 24-hour Kinko’s. Some nights, Webster couldn’t sleep, and would only find relief after asking to be tasered into unconsciousness. Webster died in 2002, of a heart attack, at the age of 50.
However, before he died, Webster filed a claim for disability benefits with the NFL’s Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan and the NFL Player Supplemental Disability Plan.2
Webster’s claim moved forward during his life, and after it, for the benefit of his estate and his family. Webster, and the eventual Webster Estate, had sought from the NFL an award for permanent and total disability, for active football benefits. The awarding of active football benefits would have meant that Webster became disabled as a result of football, and while an active football player, or shortly after his retirement. The active football benefits paid out more than other disability benefits available from the NFL. The NFL retirement board continually denied the Webster claim, ignoring unanimous medical evidence and opinion in favor of the awarding of active football benefits. The case finally reached the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, upon appeal of Webster’s Estate. In Jani v. The Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan; The NFL Player Supplemental Disability Plan3, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an earlier ruling in favor of Webster’s Estate, holding that, “In sum, the Board has offered no relevant medical evidence to contradict the unanimous medical opinion of examining experts…Because these expert opinions at least establish a presumption that Webster is entitled to Active Football benefits, and the Board did not rely on substantial evidence to contradict them, we conclude that the Board abused its discretion in denying Webster Active Football benefits.”4 The Court also awarded Webster’s Estate attorneys’ fees and costs.5
Although Mike Webster’s story ends with the awarding of his posthumous benefits to his family, the tragedy of his life after football is stark, and stands as an indictment of the NFL’s pension system. And even though Webster’s story is the most graphic and glaring argument against the NFL’s present pension system, there are many more stories of NFL players who have been let down by the game that they helped to make today’s big ticket.6
The NFL pension system, and the problems inherent in its structure, have recently been at the center of much attention, with Congressional hearings having been held in June to address the issue. In holding hearings, Congress made a public gesture of its concern for a system that may leave former players unprotected by an NFL that still profits from those players, both directly (NFL archived films presentations) and indirectly (as the builders of the most popular professional sport in America). The hearings also presented an opportunity for former players, including ex-Chicago Bears’ head coach Mike Ditka, to be heard on the issue in a national forum. Ditka, particularly, is a vocal and vociferous critic of the current regime, and claims that the NFL does nothing to assist its former players.7
The NFL and NFL players’union defend the current policy by claiming that strides are being made to improve the program, including a recent agreement to allow players qualified as disabled under the Social Security system to be classed as disabled within the NFL system. These arguments, if nothing else, are an admission that the prevailing system needs work.8
There are several recognizable flaws with the NFL’s pension system. Although the NFL pays out $60 million per year in pension benefits to former players, including $20 million in disability benefits, only 317 of the over 10,000 eligible players receive benefits.9 Further, there is no specific group within the NFL structure that represents the interests of former players. The NFL Players’ Association only represents the interests of active players.10 Older players, who are in most need of benefits, receive the least amount of assistance. Players from the pre-1959 era, who are now in their 70’s, only receive an average of $16,200 per year from the NFL.11 Finally, the NFL pension program does not fully contemplate the violence, and resulting injury risk, of NFL play, as opposed to the violence and injury risk present within other sports. The NFL and NBA pension plans are quite similar, and the chance of lingering and debilitating injuries is infinitely higher for NFL than NBA players, given the nature of the two sports.12
This September, following the Congressional hearings respecting the NFL pension plan, Senator John Kerry stated that, if the NFL and NFL Player’s Association were not able to fix the pension plan system on their own, that he would introduce legislation that would accomplish the task.13
Senator Kerry’s proposal may be a step in the right direction. But, the intercession of Congress did little to assist Major League Baseball with its steroid morass. In the end, it is the obligation of the NFL and its current players to care for the giants upon whose shoulders they stand, and to make the provisions necessary for funding the comfortable lifestyles of those who made the strides that led to the funding of their fabulous lifestyles. Those who have given their lives in improvement of the lives of others deserve better than they have thus far gotten.
Endnotes
1 In fact, Terry Bradshaw, the Steelers quarterback when Webster was at center for all those Super Bowls, admitted, during Webster’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony, that the center called as many plays as the quarterback on those Steeler teams. See “A Tormented Soul”, Part 2 of a 5 Part Series, by Greg Garber, available at http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=1972286
3 209 Fed.Appx. 305. Sunny Jani became the administrator of Webster’s estate. Jani, who runs a convenience store, befriended Webster near the end of his life after meeting him for an autograph signing. Jani was essentially Webster’s caretaker and financial manager for the last six years of Webster’s life.
6 For the story of Dick “Night Train” Lane, see “The NFL’s Forgotten Players”, by Ken Murray, appearing in the Baltimore Sun, available at http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/football/bal-sp.nfl702,0,6990509.story?coll=bal-sports-football; and, for the stories of certain other players who recently testified before Congress on the issue of NFL pensions, see “Congress Tells NFL to Fix Pension Disability Plan or Else”, by Michael O’Keefe, appearing in the New York Daily News, available at http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/2007/09/19/2007-09-19_congress_tells_nfl_to_fix_pension_disabi.html?ref=rss
9 Id.
13 See “Congress Tells NFL to Fix Pension Disability Plan or Else”, by Michael O’Keefe, appearing in the New York Daily News, available at http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/2007/09/19/2007-09-19_congress_tells_nfl_to_fix_pension_disabi.html?ref=rss
Marc A. D'Antonio, Esq., is the senior program manager for the Massachusetts Bar Association. Mr. D’Antonio awaits the inevitable return of USC to the top of the college football polls, once other pretenders to the crown suffer their losses. Who did you think was going to win the title, BC?! Mr. D’Antonio would like to make it clear to Pete Carroll, if he is reading this, that Jake is ready to sign the letter of intent. (Call me.)
Jared D. Correia, Esq., is publications attorney with the Massachusetts Bar Association. Prior to joining the MBA, he was a private practice attorney, working in the areas of general practice and disability law. Mr. Correia, the ultimate homer, is doing the John Papelbon jig right now because the Red Sox are in the World Series. Sox over the Rox in five or six is the call here. Unfortunately, Mr. Correia is not able to share the joy of Patriots fans. Since he is not a bandwagon jumper, and a true blue Giants fan, he is forced to revel in the (ahem) accomplishments of that other Manning brother. (Not Peyton.)