Redskins’ lineman Stephen Bowen is moving his family to D.C., and while that’s a common practice for athletes who sign with new teams, this move comes with some pretty emotional baggage.
Bowen’s wife, Tiffany, gave birth to twins in Dallas on June 28. The babies were born premature at 24 weeks, and one of the infants died 10 days later. The other has remained in the hospital since.
The family has gotten the go-ahead from doctors to transfer the baby, named Stephen III, to a hospital in Northern Virginia so that they can begin the transition to living in the D.C. area. While he’s not out of the woods yet, baby Bowen has come a long way.
“He’s still going to be in the hospital for a little bit, but he’s made a lot of progress,” Bowen explained. “He’s 4 1/2 pounds now. It’s just him being a little stronger.”
It also means that Bowen will get to spend time with a son that he’s only gotten to hold once.
“I’ve been looking forward to it for the whole month,” Bowen said. “Just to see him, I mean, [recently] I’ve only seen pictures of him. My wife always tells me he’s changed a lot, so I’m looking forward to it.”
The stress of a new team, a new city and a wife handling this emotional journey alone 1,300 miles away has been a lot for Bowen to handle. The thought of holding his baby and having his family here makes the 306-pound defensive end a little emotional.
“I can’t even put it into words how I’m gonna feel.”
