Jay Ruderman:

Welcome to All About Change. Now is a great time to check out my new book about activism, Find Your Fight. You can find Find Your Fight wherever you buy books, and you can learn more about it at jayruderman.com.

Today my guest is Jonathan Jones. Jonathan, an NFL cornerback, who rose from the undrafted ranks to become a two-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots, is a businessman, philanthropist, and a licensed pilot. In 2019, Jonathan founded the Jonathan Jones Next Step Foundation, a platform dedicated to empowering youth through education, professional development, and mentorship. The foundation works to alleviate food insecurity, promote women in STEM and sports, and to promote professional development in communities where he lives.

In 2023, Jones received the Ron Burton Community Service Award, became the first male ambassador for Play Like a Girl, and was a finalist for the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. In 2024. He also won the Ed Block Courage Award, an NFL award for players who are role models of inspiration, sportsmanship, and courage. S

Jonathan, thank you so much for being my guest on All About Change. I’m really excited to have this conversation.

Jonathan Jones:

Thank you for having me. It’s an honor to be here.

Jay Ruderman:

It seems like everywhere you go, you leave your mark. Your foundation is active in Carrollton, Georgia, where you grew up; in Auburn University, where you went to college and where my cousin is a history professor. And certainly as a Bostonian I can say with certainty that you’ve had a massive impact on our community since you joined the Patriots. How do you build the connections in the places where you’ve lived?

Jonathan Jones:

It’s reciprocal energy, honestly. It comes off a relationship, and I could say I genuinely have a relationship with those places. For my hometown, obviously you grow up there, you spend so much time. And the people there I’d say raised me. It’s a small town. To start there, you kind of know everyone and you build so many relationships and you get the opportunity to excel based off the help from other people.

And then you get to college and it’s the same thing. You’re still on your journey and I’m … have these dreams. I wanted to be in the NFL and graduate from Auburn, and the people there helped me along that journey and to get to New England and leave an imprint here and be here for nine years. And as I begin to look back on, it’s all reciprocated energy and trying to make sure that I give back to places that gave to me.

Jay Ruderman:

And the thing is, it’s not just you embedding yourself in the community. Your wife, Andressa, just opened Joyville, which is an indoor playground near the Patriots’ stadium. I listened to some of her interviews saying, these places are available all over South, but here not so much. And I know your parents were a huge influence on you. This instinct to give back, who instilled that in you?

Jonathan Jones:

As you alluded to, it starts at home with my parents. I come from people who didn’t have much but still gave. And so when you grow up in that environment and you become fortunate and blessed as I’d become, you don’t forget those principles that I’ve seen, whether it’s my grandmother or everyone around me, just want to help. If you were in a bad space, there was no time you couldn’t go to my mother, to my grandmother, to my father or anybody in my community to ask for help.

My grandmother, well, my great-grandmother, when she cooked … she was the matriarch of the family. And when she cooked, everyone came into town. Everyone came to her house and had a meal every Sunday. That was kind of the thing and it started there. But just even my father, I grew up … My dad’s very hands-on and good with his hands. And so people would call him, “Hey, can you fix this? Can you do this for me?” And it wasn’t his full-time job, but just any moment that he could go to help someone.

And he did it with no expectations of being paid or anything in return, it was just to help. And I grew up watching my father be that individual for so many people that he’d … Hey, throw some brakes on someone’s car or go fix something that they just needed help with. And it was genuine. It wasn’t expecting anything in return, it was genuine.

Jay Ruderman:

You have talked a lot in the past about mentorship and how you learned from different people. And you talked about a guy who was a little bit older than you in high school and he was running track and you wanted to learn from him. And I’m sure there were other people who are mentors when you were growing up. How’d you come to that, to say, “Listen, mentorship is important. That’s important. I can learn from these people.” That’s not something that most young people are thinking about.

Jonathan Jones:

I don’t know where I got that from. And I try to give that to other young kids as you come across because it is important, mentorship. And I always say, I can look back at every accomplishment that I’ve made and who was leading that, who was leading that and who I was trying to follow in their footsteps to become.

And so as you alluded to DeLandis, one of my good friends, he grew up in Carrollton. And seeing him go to college, just simply go to college and run track, I was taken away because I hadn’t seen that be done before and I just wanted to fall in his footsteps. I had been that way as a young kid and that kind of goes from sports. My mom would put me in front of the TV on Sundays to watch football, and the next Saturday I was out there trying to emulate something that I saw on TV. And so I think that just stuck with me in a lot of other areas. And so I understood how big mentorship was of just watching something be done and trying to replicate it.

Jay Ruderman:

One of the key elements in my new book about activism, which I’m going to give you a copy, is finding your issue. And you’re such a good example from people to learn from. NFL players have a massive opportunity to give to their community, but you took it to the next level.

First I would say you weren’t drafted, so you didn’t come in with a high contract worth millions to begin your activism. And second, you chose multiple ways to give back to the community. How did you approach community work in the beginning of your career and how did that change once you became more established in the NFL?

Jonathan Jones:

As with most athletes, one of the first things I did was the camp, was a football camp. And that’s just a direct correlation of what brought me here, what got me here. And as I built out my NFL career, there was more to me as a person than just the football aspect.

As mentorship, I always say the greatest thing that I can be is an example, more so than giving money and time, just being an example. And I’ve tried to be that actively in the things that I do to be an example to kids. And I try to be multifaceted, so there’s so many things that I’m trying to be involved in so that I can turn around and give that back to someone else. And so that’s why I even named my foundation Next Step Foundation because it wasn’t specific to any one cause, it was wherever you’re at in your journey, I can meet you there and help you take your next step. And that was deliberate.

Jay Ruderman:

But you started that in the beginning. Where do you think that came from, the fact that you knew from the beginning, “I want to give back.”

Jonathan Jones:

I think it comes down to stability. I was fortunate enough to have that stability from support. A lot of guys don’t have that. And so when you’re in a stable place, it’s a much easier process to help people and to realize that there are other people that need help. And it’s easy to get caught in the journey of yourself, of, “I’m trying to make it, I’m trying to become this superstar. Me, me, me.” That’s easy to get caught up in.

But when you have stability around you and support, you can breathe a little bit and look around and say, “I am blessed. I’m fortunate to be where I am.” If I’m not the highest paid player on the team and I’m just here barely, I’m a free agent, there’s so many other people that would love to be in my shoes and my cup is full and I can pour into other people.

Jay Ruderman:

Right. And you’ve been recognized with the Ron Burton Award and you were a finalist for the Walton Payton Award. So I think the League and ownership, Patriots, really realized what you were doing for the community and wanted to recognize you for that.

My dad used to always say that no one gets to where they are without some help from someone else. And you’ve talked a lot about even going back to running track, and you guys I guess traveled to different meets and you didn’t have the money to do it. And one of your coaches had a friend who backed you up. That meant so much to you. And I don’t know if he knew it at the time, but what do you think about that concept of no one really gets to where they are without someone helping them out?

Jonathan Jones:

It’s the truth. No one is self-made. That doesn’t exist. Everyone has some help along the way. And Dave, Dave Knight, was a good friend of my track coach Larry Turner. And we couldn’t afford to go to a national track meet, which was usually either California, Oregon, or somewhere far where you’re paying airfare and hotel.

Coach Turner reached out to Dave Knight and he asked him, “Hey, I need some help trying to get these athletes to their national meet.” And Dave was like, “Hey, sure, I’ll help you.” They were good friends. “I’ll do what I can.” At the time, as a young guy, you’re not realizing his career, his profession was selling insurance by profession. And he helped and we were able to go on national trips expense-free. And he did that the first year and he thought, “Hey, I’m done. I did my deed.” And it began a relationship that he was doing it year after year.

Jay Ruderman:

Wow.

Jonathan Jones:

And so many kids, not just me, have [inaudible 00:10:03] from that track program that are maybe not professional athletes, but a good father, is a good husband, good businessmen and women because of Dave Knight. And I’ve had the opportunity recently to rekindle a friendship with him and to just let him know how much his small donations at the time impacted me and my life and so many others.

Jay Ruderman:

And what was his reaction when you rekindled that friendship and you told him how much impact he had on you?

Jonathan Jones:

He was excited. I think more so to see things come full circle. A lot of times when we give and we give out, we don’t really always get to see the end result. We don’t get to see the benefits of it. And I think him being able to see tangible benefits of his time, his effort, and his money, if anyone gets to see that in their lifetime, it’s a feeling that you don’t forget.

Jay Ruderman:

I want to talk to you a little bit about that because as we’ve talked right now about you being a product of people who invested in you, do you see people who you’ve benefited through the foundation? Are you seeing others that you’ve helped begin to pay that forward or is it too early in the process?

Jonathan Jones:

No, I have, and it’s a beautiful thing to see. It’s a beautiful thing to see that once you hand a baton to someone and they hand it to someone else in the relay, to loop back to track, it’s a beautiful thing to see. The guys who’ve looked up to me, whether it was from business things off the field or being here in the community, just them being able to look up to me and do things, it’s beautiful to see.

Jay Ruderman:

And what’s that feeling like? Because I think a lot of people who might be listening, who maybe they’re athletes or maybe they’re just everyday people and they’re giving back, and they’re wondering, “What’s in this for me?” Not that they’re looking for any sort of maybe ego or recognition, but talk about the feeling of helping people who you know need the help. You know they need that little bit of extra help. And what does that do to you?

Jonathan Jones:

It’s a good selfish feeling, in a good way of, “Hey, I did that. I helped that person.” And you feel embedded to their journey. When you give a mom and her kids some clothes back to school and you see the confident and the smile and that she comes back and say, “Hey, my son has this confidence now that he’s going to school.” And you might not ever see him out at school with the confidence, but there’s a selfish part of you that celebrates, of like, “God, I was able to do that. I was able to impact someone’s life.”

And so working for those moments, because they don’t always come. They don’t always come. You don’t get the accolades or the acknowledgement. You talk about the Walter Payton and the Ron Burton, those are nice, but to feel it from the individuals that you directly impact. And it’s usually always the parents. In what I do, it’s always the parents who acknowledge it before the kids, who they say, “My kids don’t realize what you’re doing for them, but in the future they will. And right now I just want to thank you.”

Jay Ruderman:

Jonathan, I have to ask you, the needs in our world, in our society, are so overwhelming. How do you choose in Carrollton, in Auburn, in Boston, how do you choose what to do?

Jonathan Jones:

It’s hard to become anything when your basic necessities aren’t taken care of. And so anytime I get the opportunity. With Auburn, we work with the substance program there to feed kids while they’re out of school. Anytime you can help someone with their basic necessities, I start there. And then after that, give them direction. And that’s things we do with the STEM program, because you need your basic necessities to be able to flourish. It’s hard to tell a kid to focus in school when they’re hungry or when they’re worried about other things. They don’t have clothes to fit in.

And so as their basic necessities are taken care of, I like to give direction. And that’s where the STEM and things like that come into play because you have to give someone a target to hit. A lot of these kids and youth don’t know what they can be. They don’t realize the talents that they have within themselves. And so exposing them to as many things as they can so that they can build on their next steps.

Jay Ruderman:

You were the first male ambassador for Play Like a Girl. Reading through what you’ve done, I love to see the through line through your passions and your work opening up to people who then share your passions. Talk about girls in STEM and girls in football in particular, and how do you see the connection between your passion and accessibility and how does that shape the work of your foundation?

Jonathan Jones:

Relatability, to see a group of people trying to make their way into a space that isn’t for them is something that I can relate to. And so those girls are so passionate about being in sports and representation, that at first I didn’t know how I could help. I would go into the room and I say, “Hey, I’m not like you.” At the time I thought that, that, “Hey, we’re not much alike. I’m a male.” You don’t feel comfortable speaking up for you. And they said, “We need allies. We need allies in our space to get where we want to go.” And when I heard that, it gave me the confidence to go out and petition on their behalf for them to be accepted in sports and to grow their platform and the things that they’re doing.

It’s been a wonderful journey to see those girls develop, to see them get their league started and expand flag football. I think it’s going to be a force here in the next few years that I don’t think people are ready for because they’ve just been so limited, limited in options that they could do. And so now that they’re getting that opportunity and they’re getting exposure, it’s beautiful to see.

Jay Ruderman:

Before we started the podcast, we talked a little bit about your daughter and competing in gymnastics. Tell me the impact that your daughter has had on you, her interest in sports, and you wanting to get involved in supporting her and the example that she’s been for you.

Jonathan Jones:

Yeah, that was the foundation of it honestly, was just having a daughter, having something that related me to the cause. And so watching her grow up in her journey and seeing all these ideas and dreams and aspirations that she has, and if I could use my platform to lay down a foundation before she even gets there and to help her on her journey, I’m helping so many other young girls as well along the process. So she was definitely my tie to the cause and it’s helped so many others along the way.

Jay Ruderman:

I mean, we think of STEM, sciences and technology, as being something that is focused on boys. Why is it so important for girls?

Jonathan Jones:

When we talk about inclusion, this country, this world, everything that we have is built off of a collection of people’s ideas. And the more people we can get in the rooms when decisions are being made, it does nothing but brings us further along.

And so getting women in sport, or getting women in STEM and sports and so many other areas, it brings other ideas that we wouldn’t have on our own as males. We wouldn’t have the insight. And so being able to get next to them and bring them into this conversations is going to do nothing but advance us.

Jay Ruderman:

I’m really impressed with your outlook on life. You’re a football player, you’ve been here for many years. You’ve had a longer career than most people in football, and I hope that continues. You are looking at life beyond football. I know that you’ve began to fly planes and you have other passions. And where does that wisdom come from?

Jonathan Jones:

With football, it’s one thing that we know, it’s a inevitable end. At some point, whether it’s three years, four years, 10, I don’t know, longest maybe 20, 22 as a quarterback or something, but inevitably it’s going to end. And so being prepared for something that you know is going to end is always a easier solution.

I enjoy challenging myself to see what else I can do. Making it to the NFL was my way of telling myself that, “Hey, you do belong in this area. You do belong in this space.” And you check that off. And aviation, philanthropy, other things allow me to realize that I belong in that space as well. And so those are things that I can build out for a lifetime and I’m looking forward to it.

Jay Ruderman:

And you’ve talked about when you’re involved in, for example, in aviation and different things that you’re involved in in philanthropy, of having people see people like you that are not extremely represented in those areas. So what does that mean for you?

Jonathan Jones:

A lot. And I can see it in people’s faces. When I land somewhere … To be a fact, piloting is a old, white male-dominated field. And so as a young male, young Black male, when I land places, I can see the looks on a lot of the line workers’ faces who has aspirations of becoming a pilot, of a motivation. They may not have to ever say it, but I could see it in representation. I always say the easiest thing to do is to do something you’ve seen done before, and the hardest things to do is to do something that’s never been done before.

And so to give people an opportunity to see me in these spaces, I can’t tell you the countless emails and messages on social media that I’ve got that, “Hey, I’m starting my pilot’s license.” Or, “Hey, I didn’t even know that that was a thing, that I could be a pilot or you could fly your own plane.” And it’s just exposure-

Jay Ruderman:

Wow.

Jonathan Jones:

… and exposure breeds expansion. And I’ve been fortunate enough to be the exposure to a lot of people.

Jay Ruderman:

Talk about the Next Step Foundation. How do people find out about it? What should people know? Is there any way that they can be involved in it?

Jonathan Jones:

We’re on social media. We have a website, nextstepfoundation.org. But my biggest cry is to help me help. Help me help people. That’s all I’m trying to do is help people and help people take their next step. And anytime you go out and help someone, I promise you, you don’t regret it. Been fortunate, I’m not as old as you, as wise, as you [inaudible 00:20:10]-

Jay Ruderman:

You will be.

Jonathan Jones:

Well, I hope so.

Jay Ruderman:

Not wise. You’ll be as old. You’ll be wiser.

Jonathan Jones:

But I haven’t heard too many people say, “I’m mad that I went and helped these people. Oh, I’m frustrated that I spent time helping.” I just haven’t heard that statement. And so anytime we get the opportunity to go out and help, we should.

Jay Ruderman:

That’s awesome. Jonathan, I want to thank you for being my guest at All About Change. I want to wish you the best of luck in your career. May you go from strength to strength.

Jonathan Jones:

Thank you so much. I appreciate that.

Jay Ruderman:

Thank you.

Jonathan Jones:

And we’ll continue to heal the world.

Jay Ruderman:

Pleasure meeting you.

Jonathan Jones:

Thank you.

Jay Ruderman:

Thank you so much for listening to All About Change. Today’s episode was produced by Tani Levitt and Mijon Zulu. Stay tuned in our next episode featuring Eli Beer.

Spread the word, tell a friend or family member, or leave us a review on your favorite podcasting app. We’d really appreciate it. That’s all for now. I’m Jay Ruderman, and we’ll see you soon with another episode of All About Change.