The Cowboys announced 24-year-old defensive end Marshawn Kneeland died on Thursday. / Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images
The Cowboys announced that defensive end Marshawn Kneeland died Thursday morning. He was 24. Sports Illustrated‘s Albert Breer confirmed the news.
“It is with extreme sadness that the Dallas Cowboys share that Marshawn Kneeland tragically passed away this morning,” the Cowboys said in a released statement. “Our thoughts and prayers regarding Marshawn are with his girlfriend Catalina and his family.”
The Cowboys did not share details of how Kneeland died.
Kneeland was the Cowboys’ second-round pick out of Western Michigan in the 2024 draft. The Michigan native played 18 games across one and a half seasons in Dallas, and was coming off a big game in which he scored a defensive touchdown after recovering a blocked punt in Week 9’s Monday Night Football loss to the Cardinals.
News of Kneeland’s tragic death rocked the NFL community on Thursday, with many sharing their condolences and sending thoughts and prayers to Kneeland’s family on social media:
