Former Jets star diagnosed with dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease
Mark Gastineau, the flamboyant former Jets defensive end and centerpiece of their infamous Sack Exchange, always had a flair for the dramatic — both good and bad.
But what he revealed about himself during a bizarre and rambling 30-minute radio interview on Thursday sounded like a low point.
The 60-year-old Gastineau portrayed his life in a sad, dead-end way. He sounded several lifetimes away from the superstar who was known for his wild sack dances on the field and squiring model/ actress Brigitte Nielsen around in stretch limos off of it.
Gastineau revealed to WOR’s Pete McCarthy he has been diagnosed with dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. The franchise’s all-time sacks leader said he believes his health issues are the result of his playing style and new techniques taught and enforced in today’s NFL could have prevented his diagnosis.
“When my results came back, you know, I had dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s,” Gastineau said. “It’s something that I want every player that goes out and plays to be protected in the best way they can be protected.”
At times in the interview, Gastineau spoke in cryptic sentences that were sometimes difficult to decipher.
“I’ve kinda had a huge, huge life change,’’ he said. “I found myself, you know, in places that I just, you know, just wasn’t good. It wasn’t good for me wasn’t good for my family. Then I met somebody finally who got me straight, you know, my wife Joanne.
“One day, I said, ‘Joanne, it’d be good for us to go to church maybe, you know?’ [So] I’ve been going to Times Square Church. My wife and I are side by side in the choir.’’
Gastineau then added, “Unfortunately, myself took over me … and I lost. My self was overpowering. I mean, I thought I was better than … you know.’’
He rambled about his former team, saying, “I see the Jets as my family. I have a love for those Shea Stadium fans like no other … they are my favorites. Those 10 years, you know what, now mean so much to me. I look back … everything that I did back then, you know, I was a different person back then. I brought a lot on myself.’’
Gastineau, who played with the Jets from 1979-1988, spent much of the interview promoting USA Football’s “Heads Up Football’’ program, which is in place to develop a safer brand of football and address key safety issues in the sport.
He said he believes the techniques taught in the Heads Up program would have prevented his health issues and that without these new developments, he would not have allowed his kids to play football.
“I’m not going to say that I’m not going to let my child play when I know there’s techniques out there that if I would have had them … I know that I wouldn’t have the results that I have now,” he said. “I do not want to have [my diagnosis] overpower or overshadow the Heads Up program. I want it to be a warning to mothers and fathers to be able to put their kids in safe places, to be able to carry on a team sport that I think is going to be [more] beneficial for them than if they didn’t have that in their lives.”
Gastineau repeated himself throughout the interview and often interrupted his own thoughts. He implored McCarthy to help get the word out about the NFL’s program and said he feels a responsibility to help today’s youth learn proper techniques that were not widely taught when he was coming up in the sport.
He, too, insisted he has no regrets about his career despite his health issues.
“I am so happy that I went through the times, the trials and things that I went through in the NFL,’’ he said. “I wouldn’t trade them for anything.’’
Then he got cryptic again about the current state of his life and where he goes from here.
“I’m in a good place because I’m going to go out … I’m going to help as many people as I can,’’ he said. “I don’t want to give up because I got those results.”