As the Dallas Cowboys play their first home game since the tragic death of defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, his pregnant girlfriend, Catalina Mancera, is in attendance.
Mancera was shown taking in the game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, November 23, at AT&T Stadium.
Before the rival matchup, the Cowboys showed a short tribute video, highlighting Kneeland’s career with the Cowboys, and held a moment of silence for the fans in attendance. The team also put a framed No. 94 Kneeland jersey on the bench in his honor.
Cowboys players are also wearing player-designed No. 94 helmet decals for the rest of the season.
Kneeland died by suicide on November 6 after a brief police chase. He was 24 years old.
“It is with extreme sadness that the Dallas Cowboys share that Marshawn Kneeland tragically passed away this morning,” the Cowboys wrote in a statement at the time, confirming the young athlete’s death. “Marshawn was a beloved teammate and member of our organization. Our thoughts and prayers regarding Marshawn are with his girlfriend Catalina and his family.”
On November 10, Mancera broke her silence just four days after the NFL star’s sudden death.
“I’m grieving hard right now,” Mancera told the Daily Mail. “It will be a long time before I’ll feel ready to talk at any length.”
Catalina Mancera and Marshawn Kneeland Courtesy of Catalina Mancera/Facebook
Mancera, 22, reportedly talked to police the night before Kneeland’s death, expressing concern over Kneeland’s well-being and telling authorities Kneeland had “a history of mental illness.”
According to an ESPN report from Saturday, November 23, some of Kneeland’s friends and coaches have reached out to authorities in the past with similar concerns, dating back to 2020.
Just hours before Kneeland’s death on November 6, Cowboys’ director of security, Cable Johnson, also called police requesting a welfare check.
Johnson told authorities Kneeland had sent goodbye texts to friends and family and expressed he was “not able to go to prison or to jail.”
On November 12, Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer announced the creation of the Marshawn Kneeland Memorial Fund and revealed that Mancera is pregnant.
The fund will financially assist Mancera amid her pregnancy.
“I’d like to take a few moments and offer my condolences to Marshawn’s family, Catalina, his girlfriend,” Schottenheimer said. “We had an opportunity last night to celebrate Marshawn’s life, tell some stories. Share, laugh, cry. Marshawn loved the words ‘one love.’ So we talked a lot about love, as we grieve. I got a chance to share a couple of the things that I’ll miss the most about Marshawn.”
He continued, “My heart is heavy, my team’s heart is heavy. We don’t move on, but we do move forward.”
The autopsy results for late Dallas Cowboys star Marshawn Kneeland are being blocked from release, according to documents obtained by Us Weekly. The office of the Attorney General in the state of Texas is prohibiting release of the results because “this matter is currently pending criminal investigation and/or prosecution.” “This investigation has not yet resulted […]
Kneeland’s cousin, Nicole Kneeland-Woods, told the Daily Mail that he had been with Mancera since their days at Western Michigan.
“Marshawn shared a very special relationship with Catalina, whom he had been with since his sophomore year of college,” she said. “They supported each other through many stages of life. Catalina is an important part of our family and she’s hurting deeply too.”
On Thursday, November 14, Cowboys players spoke to the media, including defensive end Solomon Thomas, whose sister Ella died by suicide in 2018.
“Marshawn was in the building, smiling every day,” Thomas, 30, said. “He was happy, he was listening to music, he was dancing all the time. But that’s the thing with mental health and suicide. You just never know what someone’s going through. Someone could be smiling, someone could be dancing, laughing, having a great time, expressing all this joy, but inside, they could really be fighting the battle that you never know about.”
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
