HOUSTON (AP) — When Leah Still's cancer entered remission, her attention turned to unfinished business — both for her and her dad.
For Leah, 6, that meant resuming the bicycle-riding lessons she started just before being diagnosed with late-stage neuroblastoma. The first post-remission session took place in Philadelphia, and it was challenging, even with training wheels. But Leah pushed through until she conquered it, just as she conquered the disease that threatened her life two years ago.
For her dad, Texans defensive end Devon Still, that meant football. It meant proving he could still play the game he put on hold so he could help nurse his daughter back to health.
"She's very excited I'm back here on the football field," Still said during opening week of training camp. "I want to dedicate this season to my daughter, and just go out here and play the type of football I know I can play."
The Texans are giving him that chance. One year after being cut by the Bengals and after sitting out the whole 2015 season, Still is competing to be the team's starting defensive end opposite All-Pro J.J. Watt.
"Devon's had a good couple of days here," Texans coach Bill O'Brien said. "He works very hard. Typical Penn State guy. Good football player, tough guy. Glad we have him."
Texans' Devon Still goes from being out of NFL to potential starter https://t.co/jQiQGskaCi via @houstonchron
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) August 2, 2016
Between Leah's diagnosis in June 2014 and her last treatment in January 2016, Still's mind hadn't really been with the game. After that, the Texans signed him to a futures contract
Still graduated from Penn State in 2011, the year before O'Brien's first of two years as the Nittany Lions' head coach. The Bengals drafted Still in the second round of the 2012 draft but released him before the 2014 season, though they didn't leave Still completely on his own. To ensure medical insurance through Leah's treatments, they signed Still to the practice squad. In Week 2, Still was promoted to the team's active roster.
His story and his daughter's fight for her life inspired many.
The Bengals began selling his jersey and raised more than $1 million for pediatric cancer research. A year later, the Bengals were ready to focus solely on football. They released Still, who still retained his insurance according to the terms of the NFL's collective bargaining agreement.
"It was hard, but I had bigger problems that I had to solve off the field with my daughter still battling cancer," Still said.
Leah had her final treatment on Jan. 8, the same week the Texans signed her dad to a futures contract. The contract, though executed in January, became effective when the league year began on March 9.
"When he did play he was productive and he did his job well," O'Brien said. "High character guy, obviously. Big guy, strong at the point of attack ... we feel like we've got something we can really work with there."
Last season, Jared Crick started opposite Watt on the Texans' defensive line, with veteran nose tackle Vince Wilfork between them. Crick became a free agent after the season and signed with the Denver Broncos.
Now Still is competing with Christian Covington, whom the Texans drafted in the sixth round in 2015, and Brandon Dunn, whom the Texans signed off the Bears practice squad during the 2015 season.
"Instincts," Wilfork said, when asked what he notices about Still. "He's got great instincts for being a defensive lineman. Being away from the game as long as he's been, it's very exciting to see a guy like that work the way he does."
The person he wants to impress the most, though, might also be his biggest fan, Leah, who is entering first grade this fall.
"To be able to come out here and play and not have the world on your shoulders, it's easy to come out and play football," Still said.
But Still has not forgotten. He has made at least two visits to cancer kids in Houston-area hospitals this summer. And he and Leah continue to support families of kids with cancer through their Still Strong Foundation.
