Former Penn State Football Player Devon Still Reflects On His Daughter's Battle With Cancer In New Book

DJ Sixsmith

A lot has changed in Devon Still's life since he played football at Penn State.

While Still made it to the NFL, the biggest story in his life the last few years has been his daughter Leah's battle with stage four cancer. Thankfully, Leah's cancer is in remission and Devon is now enjoying life in the real world after retiring from the NFL in 2017.

"I was inspired one day to put this book out there," said Still in an interview with CBS Local. "I felt like people needed to hear this story. This gives people a playbook to get back into life with whatever struggle they're facing."

Still spent his NFL career with the Cincinnati Bengals and Houston Texans after being selected 53rd overall in 2012. Leah's battle with cancer became a national story after Devon decided to share her journey on social media. Looking back on everything now, Devon wishes he could've done some things differently.

"Writing this book was really therapeutic because I got to relive some of these moments," said Still. "I wanted to be transparent, so people could see themselves in my struggles. I'm really glad that I gave Leah's battle with cancer a purpose. One thing I regret is not being vulnerable enough in front of Leah and crying in front of Leah. I thought I had to be strong for her in order for her to be strong."

The 29-year-old was a standout at Penn State. Still was a Consensus All-American in 2011 and was named Big Ten Defensive Player Of The Year. Still doesn't watch too much football these days because it's still not an easy thing for him to do.

"I know I can still do it. When I came back from my lisfranc injury, I signed with the Jets and probably did it a little bit too early," said Still. "I wanted to prove that this injury wouldn't stop me from living my dream. I probably had about seven plays with the Jets in the preseason and I had two sacks before I was released. That showed me I still had it left in the tank, but it wasn't necessarily good for me. When I realized that, I knew it was time to walk away."