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todd archer
las vegas-like dallas cowboys Coach Brian Schottenheimer walks off the field to cheer for fans at Allegiant Stadium on Monday night win 33-16 against las vegas raidersHe kept pointing towards his T-shirt.
Schottenheimer was wearing one of those shirts reminiscent of Cowboys defensive end Marshon Neeland who died on 6 November What officials said was that it was a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a brief chase by police.
“If I say that the first time I wore this shirt I was in tears, as you can imagine,” Schottenheimer said, his voice hoarse and filled with emotion. “But more than anything, I know Marshon was looking down on us, and we wanted to make him proud. And I think we did that.”
After the bye week, the Cowboys spent the early part of last week meeting with grief counselors as a team and then in small groups. They held a candlelight vigil for Neeland on Tuesday. When they returned to practice for the first time Thursday, some players said it felt good to be on the field again.
They wanted to honor Neeland with the way he played.
“Obviously, to come out there tonight and play with the style that they played with, the intensity, the effort, the finishes, very proud of those guys,” the quarterback said. dak prescottWho threw four touchdown passes. “This doesn’t put a stop to it. We’re going to continue to move forward highlighting Marshon and carrying on his legacy. And we need to play like this every week moving forward. He’ll be with us forever.”
Prescott wrote the words “One Love”, one of Neyland’s favorite sayings, on his wrist tape. From homemade signs from fans in the stands to a moment of silence before the game, there were constant reminders of Neyland. In addition to the T-shirts, the Cowboys’ helmets featured a blue decal with Neeland’s number 94 on it. His game jersey was hung in the locker room and behind the defensive side of the bench during the game.
Upon arrival, defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton wore a replica jersey of Neeland’s No. 94. The Cowboys will wear T-shirts bearing Neyland’s likeness again next week. philadelphia eaglesAlthough some people may wear them for the rest of the season.
The Raiders wore shirts in pregame warmups that read, “Call an Audible,” with “988” on the back, the number to dial for suicide and crisis lifelines.
“You’ve got to play through the pain. It’s part of the game. No, but playing through the pain is something that’s part of the game,” Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuva Said. “Just being able to compartmentalize that pain and take it and use it. I can’t say no one will understand, [the] People who don’t play football, but if you’ve been through something like this, you know how it feels. You have to keep going and keep going, just to be able to repeat that pain again.”
Prescott said the energy before the game was business-like. Schottenheimer said there was a familiar focus when the music was playing. On the ground, the defense performed at its best and gave up only one touchdown and 236 yards. raiders quarterback geno smith Of the 49 dropbacks, 16 were forced. He was sacked four times and hit 18 times.
Prescott’s four touchdown passes went to four receivers: wideouts. cd lamb, george pickens And Ryan Flournoyand tight end jake ferguson,
Flournoy was one of Kneeland’s closest friends. His wife and Kneeland’s girlfriend, Catalina Mancera, are also close. Couples will double-date.
After his touchdown, Flournoy looked for a while in thought.
“The whole season, we’re going to play for him,” Flournoy said. “He was our teammate, our brother. Just keep going, keep playing. Just knowing he’s here with us. He’s gone, but he’s not gone. He’s still with us.”
