Goodwin family opens up on loss of unborn twins

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Wide receiver Marquise Goodwin hadn't discussed why he stepped away from the San Francisco 49ers for two games during the season to tend to a personal matter. As it turned out, that personal matter was another devastating loss for him and his family.

On Wednesday, Goodwin and his wife, former University of Texas track star Morgan Goodwin-Snow,released a video on their YouTube channel explaining that they again had gone through the anguish of losing unborn children.

This time, Goodwin-Snow explained, more pregnancy complications led to the loss of the twin baby boys they had been expecting.

"November obviously would be tough since we lost our kid last year during the season the week of the Giants," Goodwin said in the video. "So it was tough for us this November just dealing with that but had a lot of strength and we made it through that week and another thing happened. This November, I had to miss two games. We experienced another traumatic event in our life that we had to overcome and it was tough at that point in the season, but I'll let Morgan go into detail on that."

According to Goodwin-Snow, she was about 19 weeks pregnant when she went into pre-term labor in November. She began having contractions, had been in and out of the hospital and was placed on bed rest in the days before the 49ers headed to Tampa Bay for a Nov. 25 game against the Buccaneers. She ended up back in the hospital again after waking up at 3 a.m. with painful contractions.

At the hospital, Goodwin-Snow's water broke and complications led to her losing both of the babies.

"We knew that this was a possibility, obviously, because they're sticking me with stuff in my stomach underneath anesthesia," Goodwin-Snow said in the video. "So that happened in November, which is why [Goodwin] missed two games and we're trying to make it, praying and going through that. But we're just taking it day by day."

Before losing their twins, the Goodwins had just hit the one-year anniversary of the loss of their previous child, whom they planned to name Marquise Jr., on Nov. 12, 2017. Goodwin-Snow was nearly halfway through that pregnancy when the baby was delivered stillborn. At the time, Goodwin-Snow encouraged her husband to play against the New York Giants later that day.

Goodwin not only played but scored an 83-yard touchdown that ended with him blowing a kiss to the sky, dropping to his knees and saying a prayer in the end zone.

After that loss, the Goodwins said they wanted to share their story in hopes it could help someone else going through something similar. They continued to spread their message of hope and faith in public settings and to those who reached out for help. For this year's "My Cause, My Cleats" initiative, which allows players to show support for the cause of their choice, Goodwin chose the March of Dimes, a nonprofit that works to improve the health of mothers and babies to prevent birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality.

The outpouring of support the Goodwins received last time as well as the stories they heard from others going through their own struggles spurred the release of Wednesday's video and another heart-wrenching story of loss.

"It helped last time just move past it and kind of finding our way," Goodwin said. "A lot of people reached out, and that was cool. A lot of people sent us things last time, and it just helped to know how much we were loved by the people we've come in contact with and even the people that we haven't physically met. Just to see how much you guys love and support us, we definitely appreciate that."

After explaining their family trauma, the Goodwins added video of the private gender reveal video they had shot in which they found out both babies were boys. Because of their previous experience, the Goodwins intended to keep the pregnancy a secret until they felt comfortable with the health of all involved.

"I was afraid of another loss, so I was gonna hold out until I reached a certain point to where I really couldn't hide it anymore," Goodwin-Snow said.

At the end of the nearly 14-minute video, the Goodwins teased another forthcoming video documenting the travels they have planned this offseason. Last year, they ventured to the Maldives and Thailand, using travel as an escape. They did not reveal where they plan to head next but made it clear that, with all they have been through in the past couple of years, they can still lean on each other to get through some of life's most crushing blows.

"[We're] taking it day to day and just comforting each other and doing different things to keep our minds busy and each other busy," Goodwin said. "The dogs definitely keep our hands full. Traveling, we've got a lot of news to tell you all about that and just showing each other love any time that we can. We appreciate y'all for supporting us so much through this time."