Christmas Day was heavy and emotional for Catalina Mancera, the pregnant girlfriend of late NFL player Marshawn Kneeland. While many celebrated the holiday with joy, Mancera shared a touching tribute that showed how much she is still hurting.

On Christmas Day, Kneeland’s pregnant girlfriend, Catalina Mancera, shared an emotional Instagram story with her followers. The post showed how hard the holiday was for her without him. In the video, Catalina shared a clip from their first Christmas together. It showed Marshawn smiling as he opened a gift she had given him. The video was set to the song ‘Christmas Ain’t the Same’ by 3Breezy. “Our first Christmas 🥺🫶🏽,” Catalina wrote in the caption.

The Cowboys’ defensive end, Marshawn Kneeland, tragically passed away on November 6 in Texas. The 24-year-old player’s death shocked many people in the NFL community, as fans, family, and teammates mourned the loss of a young athlete with a promising future. Reports later confirmed that Kneeland died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Authorities said Kneeland was dealing with mental health struggles. That night, his girlfriend contacted the police after receiving a worrying message from him. Despite a search using dogs and drones, he was later found dead around 1:30 a.m. near his crashed vehicle.

Marshawn Kneeland’s pregnant girlfriend shares emotional message

Earlier in December, Catalina shared an Instagram reel capturing moments from the NFL player’s life. Along with the video, she posted an emotional message expressing her grief and the pain of losing their future together after his sudden passing.

“Not only am I mourning you, but I’m mourning our future and all the dreams we talked about building together,” she wrote. She added that the coming year “should’ve been the best year of our lives,” before sharing how their talks of marriage and raising a family would now remain dreams. She ended the message by saying, “It was, and always will be, you for me,” and asked him to watch over her forever.

A week after Kneeland’s passing, Catalina Mancera announced she was pregnant.

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Kneeland grew up in Michigan and later became a key player at Western Michigan. In his final college season, he recorded 57 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and 7.5 tackles for loss in just nine games, showing clear potential for a successful NFL career.

The 24-year-old defensive end had joined the Cowboys with hopes of making an impact in the league. While his professional career was just beginning, Kneeland’s talent and hard work had already made him a respected player among coaches and teammates. His untimely death has indeed left a gap both on and off the field.