The Dallas Cowboys' preparation to play in Las Vegas on Monday night, in their first game since the death of defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, included two difficult questions, team owner Jerry Jones said over the weekend.
"How did this happen?" Jones said during a local radio appearance. "How in the world does this happen?"
Kneeland, 24, died Nov. 6 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to police in Frisco, Texas. Troopers from the Texas Department of Public Safety tried to stop his car for a traffic violation when Kneeland evaded officers, crashed his car and eventually fled, police said. He was found dead about three hours after police attempted to make the traffic stop.
The Cowboys have established a memorial fund for Kneeland's girlfriend and their unborn child.
"My feeling is that everybody is just a little dumbfounded, much less the sorrow that’s involved here for everybody involved inside the Cowboys,” Jones said.
The Cowboys (3-5-1) were on a bye at the time, and the more relaxed schedule has helped team members have more time with loved ones to grieve, coach Brian Schottenheimer said before Monday’s game.
"Everybody deals with it different. Some guys, getting out on the grass is going to be the best thing in the world for them. Some guys, getting out on the grass is gonna be painful, and that’s OK," Schottenheimer said. "We’re going to give each other grace and time, but I do promise you this: These guys will be ready to play against the Raiders."
Quarterback Dak Prescott, whose brother died by suicide in 2020, said Friday that focusing on football was "the best medicine for me."
"Marshawn went through my mind a few times in practice today, and I just countered that with running harder after a play or trying to do something to better this team and to show that," Prescott said.
Kneeland was honored before the start of Monday’s game with a moment of silence.
Dallas players also wore shirts during warmups featuring Kneeland’s photo.
And in the locker room, Kneeland’s jersey was displayed.
Police recordings showed that before Kneeland's death, the Cowboys' head of security told police that Kneeland had "sent out some group texts that are concerning, probably mental health."
Cowboys linebacker DeMarvion Overshown told reporters that he and some of his teammates "have been in and out of sadness."
"Even now, knowing the darkness he was going through, yet he still was able to come up here and be the light for so many other people," Overshown said. "He was one of the guys that I seen almost every day when I came in after my surgery because he would be in the building. Being able to laugh with him, get that giggle, get that chuckle from him, was something that you look forward to every day. ...
“This is something that we won’t just wake up tomorrow and then everything’s going to be OK and all of a sudden understand god’s plan, it’s not. But it is one of those things where we got to pick it up and we got to move forward and we got to keep Marshawn’s legacy alive and that was smiling every day, enjoying the grit and the hard work that comes with this. And that’s playing with a passion."
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 or go to 988lifeline.org to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
