Packers RB Aaron Jones opens up on impact of father's death on NFL career
Green Bay Packers running Aaron Jones has given an insight into the kind of impact that his father had on him growing up. The running back has been without his father since April 6, 2021, after Alvin Jones Sr. died from complications with COVID-19.
The running back famously lost a pendant that had his father's ashes in it on Lambeau Field during a "Monday Night Football" September, only to luckily have a trainer find it in an end zone in the early hours of the next day.
Speaking on "The Pivot" podcast with Ryan Clark, Jones lifted the lid on what it was like growing up with his dad, saying that he was largely responsible for him being the player and person he is now.
“My dad's everything," Jones said. "He's my rock, but I'm definitely thankful for those hard times. As a kid, you don’t understand, or even as a teenager, you don’t understand it, but they really got your best interests on it. My dad told me, 'If this is what you want to do, I’m going to push you to be the best at it.'
"So, I told him, 'Yeah, this is what I want to do,' but what you don’t understand, this is what comes with it. It made me tougher. I feel like I can get through anything, resilient, but I feel like a little bit of that is also the military upbringing.
"One thing my dad told me when I was younger was we had more god-given talent naturally when we were younger, but he’s like that talent gap is going to close, and when that talent gap close, the only thing that’s going to separate you is the work you put in. He’s just a great role model for me."
Many of us know @Showtyme_33 dropped a pendant with his father’s ashes on the field at Lambeau. Yes, his father’s death affected him greatly, but it’s his life that still resonates today.
Tap into @thepivot w/ Aaron Jones & @jswaggdaddy 12:00 Eastern.
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Jones taking his father's lessons on board as a premier back in the NFL
The running back's upbringing and the lessons he learned from his father have served him well. Being a hard worker has made him the star that he is today.
He has played six years in the NFL, all with Green Bay, and has three 1,000-yard rushing seasons. Forming a superb one-two punch with fellow running back AJ Dillon, the Packers' backfield is a tough one to stop.
His dad preached resilience, and Jones is as resilient as they come and he had to be this season as the Packers had a down year by the franchise's high expectations.
But with his father's lessons on board, we can't imagine that the running back will let anything affect him going forward.