Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland was found dead in the early hours of November 6, 2025, with the cause of death reported to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Eight months after the 24-year-old EDGE’s abrupt demise in Frisco, Texas, a new report has now revealed a major health finding.
After conducting a post-mortem brain tissue analysis, Boston University’s CTE center on Tuesday posthumously diagnosed Kneeland with stage 1 chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
Dr. Ann McKee, director of Boston University’s CTE center, on Tuesday revealed the unsurprising nature of the findings in Marshawn’s case, emphasizing how the diagnosis aligned with what researchers have observed in young athletes over the years.
“Unfortunately, I was not surprised to find CTE in the brain of Mr. Kneeland, because we have found this progressive brain disease in nearly half of the athletes we’ve studied who have died before the age of 30,” Dr. Ann McKee stated.
While the exact cause of Marshawn’s CTE diagnosis was not revealed, this degenerative brain disease is often caused by repeated head injuries, resulting in cognitive decline, motor function issues, and behavioral changes.
CTE Foundation CEO Sounds Alarm After Marshawn Kneeland’s Diagnosis
After defensive lineman Marshawn Kneeland’s posthumous stage 1 CTE diagnosis, CEO of the Concussion & CTE Foundation, Chris Nowinski, has now revealed how players in the modern era are still at risk of being afflicted by this degenerative brain disease.
“Mr. Kneeland played in the modern era of concussion protocols and better helmets, and yet he still developed CTE,” Concussion & CTE Foundation CEO Chris Nowinski said. “We have no reason to believe the current generation is at a lower risk of CTE than previous generations”, Nowinski stated.
Nowinski further highlighted how just having concussion protocols is not enough, as measures preventing head impacts should be adopted to minimize the risk of CTE in contact sports.
“Concussion protocols do not prevent CTE, because CTE is caused by repeated head impacts, not just concussions. If we want to reduce CTE risk, we must implement CTE prevention protocols and aggressively reduce the number and strength of head impacts at every level of the game,” he elaborated.
After being drafted in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, Marshawn Kneeland represented the Cowboys in a total of 18 league games, registering 15 solo stops and 11 assisted tackles across two seasons.
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