Cowboys DE Marshawn Kneeland passes away

“It is with extreme sadness that the Dallas Cowboys share that Marshawn Kneeland tragically passed away this morning,” the Cowboys said in a statement, via NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo. “Marshawn was a beloved teammate and member of our organization. Our thoughts and prayers regarding Marshawn are with his girlfriend Catalina and his family.”

Arriving as the No. 56 overall pick out of Western Michigan last year, Kneeland made four NFL starts. His tragic death comes less than three days after he scored his first NFL touchdown when he returned a blocked punt for a score against the Cardinals on Monday night in Dallas. After Sam Williams notched the second-quarter block, Kneeland pounced on the recovery for a score. It marked Kneeland’s first touchdown in the college or professional ranks.

A fast-rising prospect from the MAC program, Kneeland memorably set up 16 pre-draft visits last year. The traits he showed during a five-year college career intrigued plenty of teams despite the pass rusher entering the NFL with less-than-stellar college numbers. Kneeland did not have a five-sack college season, but he recorded 25 tackles for loss over his final three. A Cowboys team that at the time was looking for Micah Parsons complementary rush talent swooped in, adding the rookie on Day 2.

Kneeland missed a chunk of his rookie season due to a partially torn lateral meniscus sustained in early October of last year, but he made it back before season’s end. The Cowboys saved an IR activation for the rookie, who returned for the team’s Thanksgiving game. Kneeland played in 11 games last season, making one start for a team that lost DeMarcus Lawrence to injury early in the season. Kneeland made three starts this season.

Kneeland did not record a sack as a rookie but notched one this season, dropping Jalen Hurts in the Cowboys’ opener. The part-time starter, who was viewed as part of the Cowboys’ solution post-Parsons, tallied three tackles for loss in his second season.