Thomas Jones
Thomas Jones
Former NFL running back rushed for over 10,000 yards, drafted #7 overall in the 2000 draft by the Arizona Cardinals.
ProfessionFootball Player
Date of Birth19 August 1978
football character sunday
As a football player, you're really an actor. I spent all Sunday getting into character. Sunday at 10 a.m., I have to be upset with someone who didn't do anything to me. By 11 a.m. I have to be angry. And by noon, I have to be furious.
nfl body care
I took care of my body. Your body is your business in the NFL.
football kids night
Football was everything to me. There was the physical aspect, sure. I did pushups and sit-ups every night, even as a kid. But I also just studied the game constantly. It was my life.
father air goal
I had a great family. My father was in the Air Force, so we were always disciplined, goal oriented.
mom uncles dad
My father played in high school. My uncles played. From age five or six, I remember watching all the games. And I remember saying to my mom and dad even then that I was going to play in the NFL, and buy them a house and a car.
successful men wife
There are a lot of black men doing really well, taking care of their families, taking care of their wives, being successful, doing the right thing, promoting the right thing. There needs to be an evolution in our portrayal. We have to come together, pool our resources and tell our own stories. People won't respect us unless we make them.
strong thug men
When you see a black guy on TV, he's always a thug or always portrayed as someone that's in trouble. It spreads the message to everyone else that that's who we are. People often don't try to understand black men as a whole. We're creative, strong and influential.
football character acting
Acting has helped me detox in football. Getting lost in a character and a scene, it's awesome.
athlete hands play
Everybody dismissed athletes as being purely physical, but when you retire, you go from such an intense brain time - study of defense, audibles, hand signals, plays, adjustments - to a level of mental inactivity that's hard to comprehend. It's a big reason why I stay so active. Creating, evolving.
looks fertilizer
I look at failure as the fertilizer to success.
way want accomplish
I feel like there's no such thing as failure. When something doesn't go the way I want it to, I learn from it, and I accomplish more than I initially expected to.
gym-rats worry legs
I'm a gym rat, I have to admit. I live in the gym, and now that I don't have to get beat up for a living, I can truly enjoy taking care of myself without worrying about breaking my leg or getting paralyzed.
believe inspiration hard-work
My inspiration is my hometown. I feel that because I'm representing my very overlooked region of Virginia, I have to keep accomplishing my goals to show everyone there that you can truly become whatever you believe with hard work and dedication.
grateful journey nfl
No one had ever made it big from my town until I was able to make it to the NFL and now the big screen. The journey from my town to where I am now has taught me how to be resilient and fearless, and for that I will forever be grateful.