Gleason: Strzelczyk's mom gives a heads-up
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It remains puzzling to this day. What, exactly, led Justin Strzelczyk to drive 90 mph the wrong way down the Thruway before his truck slammed into a tanker in a fiery crash five years ago? For years, the mystery nibbled away at his mother's broken heart before she finally drew her own conclusion.
Whispers about steroids, illegal drug use and alcohol abuse followed the West Seneca native and former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman to his grave at age 36 before toxicology tests weeks later confirmed he was clean. His family and friends assumed he had suffered from an undiagnosed bipolar disorder.
Strzelczyk had been acting erratically, telling people he heard voices and feared his life was in danger, just before his fatal journey. Many who knew him saw an eccentric man, but he made a great leap from being a little off the wall and humorous to completely bizarre and dangerous weeks before his death.
But why?
Speculation for his mother, Mary Strzelczyk, ended after doctors examined his brain and found he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, the medical term for suffering too many blows to the head. Simply, his mother was convinced concussions played a critical role in his demise.
"Absolutely," his mother said this week. "We all said, "It was just Justin, just Justin.' It wasn't just Justin. There was something a little off."
Mary Strzelczyk, 72, a retired teacher, has been on a mission of sorts after realizing Justin's behavior was consistent with others diagnosed with CTE. Forensic neurologist Bennett Omalu, the doctor who diagnosed Strzelczyk after his death, found similar abnormalities in other NFL players who died young.
Steelers Hall of Fame center Mike Webster suffered from severe dementia and was homeless before dying of a heart attack at 50. Ex-teammate Terry Long was 45 when he killed himself after drinking antifreeze. Today marks the third anniversary of former Eagles defensive back Andre Waters committing suicide after years of depression.
Two weeks ago, Strzelczyk's mother wrote a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and begged him to address the issue. She fears for her grandson, Justin's boy. He's 14 years old, stands 6-foot-3, has the same name and wore the same number (73) as his father last season while playing football in suburban Pittsburgh.
"What happens in the NFL does not stay in the NFL," she wrote to Goodell. "It trickles down to the rest of us in this football-obsessed nation, most especially and most dangerously to the most innocent among us, our young boys. I plead with you to put this brain-trauma issue, and the practices that affect it, on the top of your list."
Football can't be blamed directly for their deaths, but you have to believe all the games and practices, all the blocking and tackling drills, all the times players had their bell rung, did irreparable damage. Players can improve their physical qualities, but they can't make their brains physically tougher.
Concussions finally have become a serious issue for the NFL after years of being dismissed and becoming the league's dirty little secret.
Strzelczyk told friends that he played through numerous concussions during his career. Perhaps it contributed to greater problems, a concoction that led him down the road to death. Maybe it was the same for the others.
"I don't want to go through all this stuff about Justin," his mother said. "Justin's dead. It's what's going on now with all these kids that are into football and adults behind them that are encouraging them to be in football. It's discouraging when you see what you're up against. Everything is always football, football, football. It's sad."
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