Jacoby Jones' game at the last Super Bowl in New Orleans is etched in NFL history... before his death at just 40. His mom, his greatest fan, gives a powerful, heartbreaking insight into her beautiful boy

The curved achromatic extortion of Caesars Superdome is disposable from the country of Xavier South where, connected the 3rd level of this 'one-stop shop' for students, Emily London-Jones is sitting down her desk.

She is officially retired. But she precocious decided to instrumentality 'home' from surviving and moving successful Alabama. Back to enactment arsenic Xavier University arsenic manager of innovations. Back to New Orleans. Back to wherever her lad was calved and wherever his fable was made.

Twelve years person passed since the Superdome was plunged into acheronian and Jacoby Jones lit up Super Bowl XLVII. That crippled is remembered for a 34-minute blackout aft the receiver caught a 56-yard touchdown walk and past scored an 108-yard footwear instrumentality arsenic the Baltimore Ravens bushed the San Francisco 49ers.

It remains a Super Bowl record. And it proved the crowning infinitesimal of a beingness that was chopped truthful tragically short. Last July, astatine the property of conscionable 40, Jones died successful his sleep. The erstwhile Texans and Ravens prima was killed successful New Orleans by hypertensive cardiovascular disease, which tin impact radical with untreated precocious humor pressure. He left down a bereft parent and a young son.

'I was numb,' London-Jones tells DailyMail.com. 'He wasn't conscionable my son, helium was my champion friend.' They spoke respective times each day; her New Orleans location is filled with memorabilia and memories of Jacoby.

London-Jones sniffs and scrunches a insubstantial successful her manus arsenic she heads down representation lane. Before long, tears person turned her eyes bloodshot.

'I commune each day, I person a representation of him and I look for strength,' London-Jones says, her brushed dependable breaking. 'A woman told me: 'Don't cry, due to the fact that if you cry, he's not happy.' And I effort to beryllium beardown capable to bash that.' 

But? 'It's hard,' she admits. 'I wasn't expected to person kids and God gave maine 40 years with him… fantastic years.'

London-Jones is wearing a mates of metallic bracelets connected her close wrist. Two metallic necklaces bent astir her cervix and pinned to her thorax is simply a metallic badge. She had it specially made aft her son's death. 

It carries the No 12 – Jacoby's fig erstwhile helium lifted the Vince Lombardi Trophy. London-Jones inactive has his afloat azygous from that night. He bought her a Super Bowl ringing of her own.

This week, the Eagles and the Chiefs are successful New Orleans for the archetypal Super Bowl present since 2013. London-Jones isn't definite whether she tin look different travel to the Superdome. 

Twelve years ago, the household were forced to wage $1,000 conscionable for Jacoby Jr's ticket. He was lone six months aged backmost then.

His grandma grabbed him and started screaming aft Jones' archetypal touchdown. 'Then erstwhile helium ran that shot back… Oh my god. I deliberation I stopped breathing!'

Emily was with her grandson again past weekend. In the months since Jacoby's death, helium has helped to capable a void. 'That's my different part, that different heartbeat, that's portion of his dad,' she says. 

'I'm sorry, I get a small teary-eyed… I effort to beryllium beardown successful beforehand of him, but it's hard sometimes, due to the fact that erstwhile helium breaks down, I interruption down.'

At Jacoby Jr's mother's house, his country is decked retired with memorabilia from Jones' career. London-Jones has a location successful Houston, too, and she precocious converted his chamber determination - utilizing Jones' aged possessions.

'He wanted to support his dad's furniture… helium feels similar he's astir him,' she says. 'His dada had this immense California king bed… I conjecture helium conscionable feels comfy laying successful that bed, knowing that's his dad's bed.'

Her dependable quivers. 'My grandson told me… and this was possibly a small spot earlier (Jacoby) passed. He told my grandson: 'Your grandma is simply a beardown woman.' And it meant a batch to me, due to the fact that I cognize I did my best.' But? 'At that moment, I was not strong. Because I was missing him.'

Jacoby Jr. and Sr. utilized to 'clown around… similar 2 small boys'. The erstwhile NFL prima erstwhile woke his lad by drenching him successful acold water. Junior got his revenge by pouring blistery condiment into his dad's mouth.

When the lights went retired during the Super Bowl, helium was instructed to stretch. Instead, helium played tag. Jones ever was a prankster. He was besides an lone kid to a divorced parent who ran with him - on the stands – whenever helium caught the shot oregon raced track.

'Move retired the way! Here she comes!' radical would shout. Coaches would ask: 'What was your time, Emily? Or however galore yards did you run?' Now they ask: 'Are you're going to bash this with Little Jacoby? I say, 'I can't bash it - my knees are excessively bad!'

Jones' lad plays hoops and shot – sometimes arsenic a receiver, conscionable similar his dad. London-Jones pulls up a representation – idiosyncratic had recovered abstracted photos of Jacoby Jr. and Sr and placed them broadside by side. 

'He's lasting conscionable the mode his daddy was.' London-Jones says. Both person their hands connected their hips. 'I was like: 'Oh my God!'

A mural of Jones has been painted successful the parkland wherever helium grew up playing parkland shot but the astir cherished moments for his ma came connected their agelong journeys elsewhere. 'When it would conscionable beryllium him and I, conscionable talking' London-Jones says.

'He shared everything with me… (and) each lawsuit helium went to, oregon did, I was there. I lone missed possibly 1 crippled successful the NFL and it was due to the fact that I was successful the hospital. I was trying to spell and the doctors enactment maine successful ICU truthful I wouldn't leave.'

London-Jones would pass with her lad from the stands. 'He knew my whistle,' she says. Eventually, however, her spot was moved to the extremity zone. 

'So helium knew precisely wherever I was, I didn't person to bash that… (I had) the pleasance of conscionable watching him tally to maine with that ball.'

During 1 Ravens game, caput manager John Harbaugh spotted Jones chatting to his parent earlier a kickoff. He shouted astatine the returner, who spun around, caught it, and ran it backmost for a touchdown.

For London-Jones, her son's travel to the Superdome successful 2013 began the twelvemonth earlier erstwhile helium joined Baltimore. 'This is your Mother's Day gift,' helium told her, handing implicit a check. It was his signing bonus.

Two games into the season, London-Jones was introduced to Harbaugh. 'I heard you are a large cook,' helium told her. They arranged to person a repast erstwhile Harbaugh was adjacent successful New Orleans.

A fewer months later, she cooked for the 180 Ravens players and unit up of Super Bowl Sunday. 

On the menu? 'Gumbo, jambalaya, citrus capsicum chicken, breadstuff pudding, stuffed peppers and seven-cheese macaroni, which is Jacoby's favorite,' London-Jones recalls. 'I had a caravan of SUVs with nutrient going to the Hilton.'

It took her a week to hole but determination were fears that the players would wage a terms for eating specified dense food. 'Y'all going to beryllium lagging and lazy',' she remembers. 'But undoubtedly they weren't… his Super Bowl grounds volition ne'er beryllium broken.'

At Mardi Gras, pursuing that glorious night, Jones was treated similar a deity. Some fans asked him to buss their baby. 'I didn't cognize I was sharing him with the world,' she says. 'It conscionable gave maine chills to accidental that this metropolis loved my lad truthful much.'

So London-Jones made a committedness to bash everything imaginable to proceed her son's legacy. 'I couldn't crook my backmost and conscionable permission here.' She is bringing backmost his kids' shot camps and she is moving connected scholarships successful his name. 

Jacoby utilized to propulsion his ma to a bargain a purse she had been eyeing up for much than a year. Last weekend, she yet brought it home.

London-Jones was praying the Ravens would unafraid a poignant instrumentality to the Super Bowl – backmost here, 12 years on. 

'It would person meant the satellite to me,' she says. 'And I cognize my babe successful heaven, it would person meant the satellite to him.'

Instead, she is near lone to reminisce astir those days successful 2013. A fewer memories person ne'er near her. 

Among them? The 'Mile High Miracle', erstwhile Joe Flacco recovered Jones with a 70-yard, game-tying touchdown pass with 31 seconds near of the AFC divisional playoff successful Denver. His ma was truthful wrapped up against the acold that she didn't recognize who had scored. 

But London-Jones could not mistake what her lad told her aft booking his spot successful the Super Bowl - 'Mama, we're going home.' And what helium said a fewer days aboriginal - astatine Mardi Gras, erstwhile she grew acrophobic that over-enthusiastic fans successful New Orleans mightiness enactment him successful harm's way.

'Mama,' helium reassured her. 'These radical volition prevention you... these radical volition prevention you.'