Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.Philadelphia Eagles tackle D.J. Jones didn't get a Super Bowl ticket as part of his singing gig in Indianapolis this weekend.
That's OK with the former Nebraska lineman — he wasn't too excited about squeezing his 6-foot-5, 320-pound frame into a seat in Lucas Oil Stadium, anyhow.
"I like to see the commercials on TV,'' he said.
Jones will sing with former and current NFL players in the Super Bowl Gospel Celebration Friday night at Butler University and Saturday night at the Taste of NFL party, which will preview the foods that will be served next year at the Super Bowl in New Orleans.
Jones hasn't sung in public since his days in the a cappella choir at Omaha Central, which he joined on a dare, but said he jumped at the chance to mix with recording artists such as CeCe Winans, Donnie McClurkin and American Idol winner Fantasia. If former Raven teammate Ray Lewis could do it, Jones figured that he could too, especially since he was singing in choirs as a youngster.
"I knew I could still sing,'' Jones said. "I always sing in the shower.''
Jones said he's a little hoarse from all of the fun times he's been having recently with friends in Omaha. He's home working out until he reports for spring drills with the Eagles in April.
It's been a whirlwind season for Jones, who has gone from the Miami Dolphins' practice squad to the active roster of the Baltimore Ravens to getting claimed off waivers by the Eagles.
Jones was released from both Miami and Baltimore because of personnel moves, and both teams had planned to pick him up again. He'd even had a long talk with his position coach in Baltimore about his future before he was nabbed during the playoffs by the Eagles.
It was a shock because no one with the organization had talked to him beforehand and they haven't since.
"Someone wrote me on Twitter and said, 'Welcome to Philly.' "
Jones admitted he was a little bitter about leaving Baltimore because he really liked the organization and the players on the team. He enjoyed Miami, but he said it was more like being on vacation.
"It was just so crazy down there, especially me being a Nebraska guy,'' he said. "We don't have any beaches in Omaha.''
The good thing, Jones said, is that because he was on the active roster with the Ravens, he'll keep that jump in salary now with the Eagles.
Jones said he realizes that the NFL is a business, so it doesn't do any good to get upset about moving from team to team. He said he's in the NFL, other teams want him and he can look in the mirror every day and know that he's given his best at every stop.
"That's all that matters to me,'' he said.
"I'm up for new adventures.''
Contact the writer:
402-444-1034, marjie.ducey@owh.com
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