The Devon Still story is one that has been mentioned and recognized throughout the NFL season but for good cause. If you have missed a step along the way or do not fully understand why this Thursday Night game holds so much weight, allow us to get you caught up:
June 2: That day the third-year defensive tackle was informed that his young daughter, Leah, was diagnosed with stage-4 neuroblastoma, a very rare pediatric cancer. When he learned of the diagnosis, Still was granted permission by the Bengals to leave organized team activities and minicamp in June to attend to his daughter. He spent the rest of the offseason in Delaware, where he’s from, and Philadelphia, where Leah was getting treatment.
“I’m dealing with a lot more issues with my daughter than just her having cancer. With [the Bengals] sticking by me through this whole time and understanding exactly what I’m going through, it’s a blessing that I was around this organization.”
August 29: NFL Final 53-Man Roster Deadline.
September 9th: Bengals announce all Devon Still jersey sales will go directly towards pediatric cancer research and his daughter.
September 11th: New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton buys 100 jerseys.
September 25th: Stills give Leah a mighty pep talk on the way to surgery (the pep talk apparently worked because the surgery was a success).
October 5th: New England Patriots acknowledge and show love to is daughter in an incredible way.
October 22nd: The Cincinnati Bengals announce they will donate $1.25 million raised from Devon Still jerseys to fight pediatric cancer.