Marshawn Kneeland's Girlfriend Announces Child's Birth Months After His Death

Catalina Mancera, girlfriend of the late Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, gave birth to the couple's only child on June 11.

Mancera shared the news in a June 15 post on Instagram, captioning the photo with a message to Kneeland.

"My favorite gift from you," Mancera said in the post.

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The carousel of photos showed their son, Makhai, wearing a onesie that displayed an image of Kneeland's jersey. It also included a video of Mancera showing Kneeland the positive pregnancy test.

Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer offered his well wishes upon the arrival of the baby during minicamp on June 16.

"We actually showed a picture of Makhi today, so congrats to Catalina," he said. "I actually saw her a couple weeks ago at (DeMarvion Overshown's) wedding – she was there, and everybody's doing great. So the guys were fired up and excited. ...

"When you're part of our family, you're family for life. So we want to make sure we do a great job of looking out for her and baby Makhai."

Kneeland's death was announced by the Cowboys on the morning of Nov. 6, 2025. He was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound after police and Texas state troopers had pursued Kneeland for an apparent traffic violation. He was just 24.

Tributes poured out in the wake of the tragedy with an increased call for mental health awareness.

The Cowboys honored their teammate in part with a special helmet decal, but also by investing in his child's future. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters on Nov. 12 that the team would be starting the "Marshawn Kneeland Memorial Fund" in part to help Kneeland’s girlfriend.

“We’re going to honor Marshawn and his family a number of different ways,” Schottenheimer said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Marshawn Kneeland's girlfriend gives birth months after his death