It’s funny how much of life revolves around people to see you or not. When I was growing up and wanted to make it as a soccer player, all these people basically told me I wasn’t special. After high school, I only had two college offers. Going into the draft, I waited almost 200 picks for my name to be called. When I finally got drafted, I think part of me thought it would soon be the same thing in the NFL: more people just looking past me or not thinking I was worth investing in.

Then I became a Green Bay Packer.

I remember this one moment in camp early in my rookie season. The Packers had drafted three running backs in 2017, and receivers began taking “bets” on which of us would emerge victorious. Obviously a lot of people had Jamaal since he was drafted highest. Then one day Davante comes up to me in the camp. He’s the No. 1 receiver, right? Fourth year and close to making a Pro Bowl. He’s the guy in this room – and he comes up to me on the sideline, I don’t even know why, and he says, “I’ve got you as my dog ​​in this race.” I honestly can’t tell you what that is did for me. It was like, OK, Davante Adams believes in me?? It meant a lot.

I also remember the very first time I played an offensive snap – it was in Week 4 at home against Chicago. Our two main running backs were out, so it’s just me and our fullback left. I run onto the field and when I get into the huddle it’s crazy: A-Rod, he just looks at me and says, “Hey. I am one of your biggest fans in this entire organization. It’s your time. Yours, right now.’ I ended up scoring and we won the game.

Over the next few weeks both main defenders were out and I played really well. But they soon got better and I didn’t go outside as much anymore. In my head I think, I had a nice moment. Maybe it’s over. But then I’ll never forget there was that one drive later in the season – and out of nowhere A-Rod calls a timeout, turns to the sideline and yells, “I WANT 33 IN THE GAME!!!” I WANT 33 IN GAME!!! 33!!! NOW!!!” I’m standing there, looking at my jersey… and suddenly I think: Oh, wait. I’m 33. This is ME. I don’t even remember what the play was or what happened in it, but I just remember how good that felt. It was this reminder that I was there for a time ReasonYou know what I mean? One of the greatest quarterbacks of all time actually sees something in me.

It wasn’t just my teammates who made me feel noticed in Green Bay, but also our fans. Especially in the early years when I was trying to make a name for myself in the league, I think people realized that good things would happen when I had the ball and they wanted me to be more involved. So they started tweeting with the hashtag #FREEAARONJONES. I know it’s just a hashtag, but I’m not going to lie, that was cool. Every time I saw it in my mentions, it reassured me that I wasn’t going unnoticed. Our fans understood how hard I worked to make things happen and I benefited from that.

I am also very grateful to the Packers organization and their trust in me as a person. One of the biggest mistakes I ever made was as a freshman: I was cited for driving with marijuana in my system and was suspended by the league for the start of my sophomore year. I was so embarrassed after it happened. They say you represent the G at all times, and I hadn’t done my part. I felt like I was letting down everyone who gave me a chance as a fifth-round pick — and for a guy like me who wasn’t established yet, a lot of teams might have said, “Let’s just cut him.” It definitely could have gone either way…but the Packers had my back. Their mentality was, This mistake is not yours. It’s only your fault if you don’t learn from it. They made sure I walked around our building with my head held high, even when I felt really depressed.

Then two very different events occurred in the spring of 2021 – and both changed my life forever.

The first happened on March 26th: I signed a second contract with the Packers. Four years for $48 million. I was on my rookie contract by then and hadn’t grown up with money, so it was a big moment. It was the feeling of security for my family and knowing that they would always be taken care of. It was also a feeling of validation for the work I had done – that all the people who had doubted me had been proven wrong.

At the center of both of these feelings was my father. He was by far the biggest influence in my life, both as a football player and as a man. He was the one who made me fall in love with football, he was my coach, my trainer, my biggest supporter, my best friend and of course he was just my father. He was a Die Hard Cowboys fan (you know the type)…but once I got drafted by Green Bay none of that mattered. In our house you would never see the Cowboys color again. It was dark green, cheese gold, all Packers. He came to every game – every single one. Before the game he made sure he was in the end zone where we were warming up. I sought him out before kick-off and shook his hand, then he kissed me on the forehead and told me how proud he was. “Go and tear it up, go and have a day.” That’s how he would leave it.

Therefore, it is difficult to put into words the emotions I experienced when my father passed away less than two weeks after signing my new contract. It basically came out of nowhere: he got COVID, there were complications and it just happened very quickly. One day I was in El Paso with my family celebrating the terms of the deal being agreed to… and when I was in Green Bay to actually sign, he was in the hospital. Eleven days later, on April 6, he was gone.

He died at home, which was what he wanted and which gave me great comfort. Both of my parents served in the military and were at war several times. Whenever my father was away, he knew that Alvin, Chelsirae and I were worried about him – so he told us, “I’m coming to your house. I’m coming home.” I’m glad he was able to come home for us one last time.

I guess that’s a heavy story for a letter like this… Maybe it’s too heavy, I don’t know. But I wanted to share it with all of you. Because when I think about my seven years in Green Bay, what I’ll probably remember most is how the Packers were there for me when I lost my father.

This is the hardest thing I’ve been through in my entire life, and I went through it as we prepared for a season where the goal was the Super Bowl. I knew everyone trusted me to do my best – which is a lot to bear when grieving the loss of a loved one. The Packers helped me as best they could to endure this grief. So many of my teammates reached out and gave me a sense of brotherhood. At the funeral, I honestly couldn’t believe it, Coach LaFleur flew all the way to Texas. Brian Gutekunst (our GM) and Ben Sirmans (our running backs coach) also flew down. To say they didn’t have to do that is an understatement… and I know I could never repay them on a football field. So I’ll just say, “Thank you.”

This is the most important thing I want to write here, not just to the Packers organization, but really to all of Green Bay. Thank you very much. It’s going to feel strange being on the visiting sideline for the first time and even being on the other side of this NFC North thing – but it’s ALL love and so much gratitude. Thanks for “betting” on me, riding with me, hashtagging for me, and everything else.

Thanks for seeing me.

No G on the helmet on Sunday, always one in my heart.

-Aaron