NFL player's loving pep talk for daughter with cancer
In the NFL, a pep talk is meant to inspire victory on the field, but for Cincinnati Bengals player Devon Still, there's much more at stake.
Still is using his words to motivate his 4-year-old daughter. As CBS News correspondent John Blackstone reports, he is counting on their combined strength as they plan to tackle a life-and-death opponent.
"I'm ready for today. You ready for today?" Still asked his daughter in an Instagram video post.
Still says his daughter Leah is the light of his life, but Leah's life has been in danger ever since she was diagnosed with stage 4 pediatric cancer in early June. Her chance of survival is 50 percent.
Still posted a note and a video to Instagram Thursday before a fateful hospital visit.
"Pre-surgery pep talk...I might be nervous and scared beyond words but I'll never let her see it...let's get this done!" he wrote.
Still had been cut by the Bengals earlier this month. He'd been sidelined by a hamstring injury and admitted his daughter's health problems had also kept him from giving 100 percent to the team. Yet, the day after he was let go, the Bengals added Still back to their practice squad and later to the full roster so he could keep his health insurance.
Still said his daughter's medical bills could reach a million dollars.
A glance at Still's Instagram page shows how devoted the father is to his daughter. Her life is well documented -- before and after her cancer diagnosis.
Late Thursday Still offered a post-surgery photo, saying, "After a 5hr 50min surgery the surgeon was able to remove ALL of her tumor and all of her lymph nodes and her right adrenal gland where it all started from...best news I've received in a long time #PrayForLeah #GodIsGood #ThanksForYourSupport."
A video of Still and his daughter singing together was shot shortly before Still found out his daughter had cancer. While Leah will still need chemotherapy, radiation and stem cell transplants, there's every hope that Leah will be back singing with her father very soon.