AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, who died by suicide in November 2025 after a high-speed chase with police, had early stage chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a brain abnormality linked to repeated concussions, his family announced Tuesday.
The Boston University CTE Center, which investigates the long-term consequences of repetitive brain trauma in athletes and others, analyzed Kneeland's brain tissue after his death. Researchers determined Kneeland, who was 24, was in stage one of four of CTE.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org
CTE is a degenerative brain disease that has been found in athletes in contact sports, combat veterans and others who experience repetitive head trauma. It has been known to cause violent mood swings, impulsive behavior and depression. It can be diagnosed only after death.
“While this diagnosis does not change the tragedy of his passing, it provides important context about some of the struggles he may have been facing. We share this information to help people understand what NFL and other high contact sport athletes might be struggling with,” Kneeland’s family, including his girlfriend, Catalina Mancera, said in a statement issued through the Concussion and CTE Foundation.
“Raising awareness is important to us. We continue to remember Marshawn with compassion for the person he was, rather than defining him by the final moments of his life. One Love,” the family said.
The abnormality has also been linked to deaths in the National Football League, as well as in hockey and soccer.
Kneeland shot himself after evading authorities in his vehicle and fleeing a car crash on foot.
The chase happened after police said Kneeland didn’t stop for Texas Department of Public Safety troopers over a traffic violation. Authorities lost sight of the vehicle before locating it crashed minutes later.
As authorities were looking for Kneeland after he fled the crash site on foot, a dispatcher told officers that people who knew him had received a group text from Kneeland “saying goodbye,” indicating he might be suicidal.
According to a 2021 study by the Harvard Medical School and the Boston University CTE Center, NFL players are more than four times more likely to develop ALS than other men.
Dr. Chris Nowinski, CEO of the Concussion & CTE Foundation, noted Kneeland's diagnosis comes even amid a modern era of concussion protocols in professional and college athletics and better safety equipment.
Kneeland started playing tackle football when he was 7 years old. He played at Western Michigan University before he was selected by the Cowboys in the second round of the 2024 NFL draft.
“We have no reason to believe the current generation is at a lower risk of CTE than previous generations. Concussion protocols do not prevent CTE, because CTE is caused by repeated head impacts, not just concussions,” Nowinski said. “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.”
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FILE - Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland (94) looks on during an NFL football game between the Carolina Panthers and the Dallas Cowboys on Oct. 12, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — A Manhattan high-rise that was under construction when columns buckled and bricks tumbled into the street below during the Tuesday morning rush hour remained unstable and was still moving, forcing nearby buildings to evacuate, officials said.
The 1970s-era office building was being converted to luxury apartments, and is the former global headquarters of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. It’s located in a busy corridor about a block from the landmark Chrysler Building and between Grand Central Terminal and the United Nations headquarters.
A nearby school with about 400 children was among the evacuated buildings, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. There were no reports of injuries and all workers inside the office tower were accounted for, he said at a press conference at the scene.
Mamdani said engineers are working on ways to shore up the damaged floors and using drones to monitor the building, so that they don't have to send people in.
“The building remains unstable," he said. “This is an extremely serious situation.”
Fire Department Chief John Esposito added that the building has continued to move as emergency officials have been on scene. Nearby streets were closed to people and vehicles.
“It is not yet stable," Esposito said. "It is still a very serious and dangerous situation.”
The Fire Department of New York said it received reports of bricks falling at around 8 a.m. from the 37-story tower. Officials found two columns had buckled on the 21st and 22nd floors and that floors were sagging between the 21st and 26th floors.
The office-to-residential conversion has been billed as the largest in the city’s history, according to Gensler, the architectural firm leading the project. The planned complex with more than 1,600 units includes adding more than a dozen stories atop the building’s original tower while also redesigning an adjoining tower.
A spokesperson for Gensler did not immediately return a voicemail and email seeking comment.
The city's building department said its inspectors and engineers were on the scene at 235 East 42nd Street.
“Our top priority right now,” the mayor said earlier, “is the safety of those who live in this area and the safety of those who work in this area.”
This story has been updated to correct that city officials revised the building’s height to 37 stories, not 38.
Izaguirre reported from Lindenhurst, New York.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks about the unstable building at 235 East 42nd Street and the surrounding buildings that were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
NYPD officers talk about nearby buildings that were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
The building at 235 East 42nd Street is seen Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks about the unstable building at 235 East 42nd Street and the surrounding buildings that were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
Firefighters stage at the intersection of 3rd Avenue and East 42nd Street after buildings in the area were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
NYPD officers talk about buildings in the area that were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
The building at 235 East 42nd Street is seen Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
People gather near East 42nd Street after buildings in the area were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
A firetruck is parked at the intersection of 3rd Avenue and East 42nd Street after buildings in the area were evacuated, Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)
