Getty Marvin Jones looks on during a late season Lions.
Marvin Jones experienced a tragic late season loss in 2019 with the passing of his son Marlo, and certainly nobody could have blamed him for remaining quiet about his feelings on the matter as a result.
Speaking with the media, Jones was asked a question about how he’s been getting along since the tragedy happened and he courageously responded. As he said, there’s been major challenges, but the strength from hearing so many stories from folks reaching out has also empowered him.
Lions WR Marvin Jones Jr. talked publicly for the first time about the loss of his son Marlo.
“I don’t think you can ever really fully cope with it. You know what I’m saying?” he said.
Jones said:
“I don’t know how you can fully cope with it. I have my days, but at the same time there’s thousands and thousands of people who’ve reached out to me about their experiences and stuff like that. My son’s in a better place. That makes me happy, and that’s the end for that topic.”
Simply and accurately put for Jones, who’s shown plenty of strength and courage in dealing with a very difficult and horrible topic. Clearly, folks from within the Detroit Lions family have been able to rise him up which is excellent to see.
Marvin Jones’ Wife Shared Instagram Tribute to Marlo
After the shocking and unexpected passing of his son, the family is attempting to rally together. Times have been incredibly hard as would be imagined, but some incredible grace was also shown under the most terrible of circumstances.
Jazmyn Jones hopped on Instagram and shared a touching tribute to her son following his passing. It read as follows:
“As I laid my sweet baby boy to rest today; I am still in disbelief that he gained his wings. My heart hurts knowing I will never get to hold you again Marlo, but I know you will forever be with me buddy. Thank you EVERYONE for all the calls, texts & prayers. I will respond soon, but know they are all appreciated and help more than you know. I know with all the love and support that my family has received from so many we will be okay. God give my baby all the hugs and kisses. I love you Marlo.”
Here’s a look at the post:
The city of Detroit as well as Lions fans, other organizations and other players have all been reaching out with prayers, actions and tributes. Clearly, it’s helped the family gain some important strength during a very dark time.
Randy Moss Reaches out to Marvin Jones
After the news broke, no shortage of folks started reaching out to Jones in order to share their condolences on the tragic news, from fans and strangers alike. Perhaps the most notable was former NFL wide receiver and Hall of Fame player Randy Moss.
Following seeing the announcement, Moss reached out to Jones on Twitter with a great message, simply sending a praying hands emoji. That sums up the feelings of most folks even after plenty of time has passed since what happened.
This is further proof that the NFL remains a brotherhood on and off the field, and it’s nice to see Moss connecting with a player he has worked with in such a dramatic and powerful way.
Marvin Jones Named a Top NFL Wideout
Back on the field, Jones could be primed for a breakout season in 2020. Recently, Nick Shook took a closer look at NFL.com with the help of some advanced stats from Next Gen Stats in order to determine the top wide receivers in football. Detroit’s Marvin Jones placed within the top 5, claiming the No. 4 spot on Shook’s list. That placed him ahead of names like Calvin Ridley and Amari Cooper.
As it relates to why, Shook admitted in the writeup that it has everything to do with not only his skill, but his ability to grow within an offense that’s set to take off this season.
“Jones, who missed three games himself in 2019, has an interesting week-by-week stat line, with the most peculiar game coming in Week 12 against Washington, with Jeff Driskel under center. Jones was targeted 11 times and caught just five of those passes; those numbers indicate either a receiver having a bad outing or a quarterback giving a receiver few chances to make a play. Jones’ expected catch rate that date was 44.1 percent and he caught 45.5 percent of his targets, meaning he performed slightly better than expectation. He was afforded just 1.3 yards of separation on average when targeted in that game and battled through a tight window on 54.5 percent of targets. This isn’t the receiver’s fault.
Jones overcame plenty — including the second-highest tight-window percentage (29.7) of any of these pass-catchers — to post our fourth and final double-digit positive catch-rate difference of 2019 (among receivers). His yardage total doesn’t say it, but he made plenty of plays amid disadvantageous circumstances.”
Jones had multiple big games this past season including a day in October where he exploded for 4 touchdowns in a game against Minnesota. Though his season was cut short by injury, Jones put up numbers and managed to dominate no matter who was the quarterback. That’s significant and leads to the thought that Jones might be heading for a career year in 2020 with a healthy quarterback.
If he can have a great season and dedicate it to Marlo, it would be special to note.
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