Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Bubba Ventrone (9.25.25)
Well, that was a fun one for you, right? With not only the block, but then the field goal. So how great was that for the unit to come through in such a big way?
“No, it was great finish to the game. Great execution on both plays. So happy for our team.”
What does Denzel (Ward) add on to those, like, on that block? It looks like he maybe got some fingers on it, but the way he just kind of, I know he’s done that before against the (San Francisco) 49ers a couple years ago. The way he can just come around the edge of this kind of play.
“I would just say Denzel is a… unique mover. His ability to bend, obviously, he’s got a really good burst and acceleration. He’s really, really good in that spot.”
Did you think he got a piece of it?
“I couldn’t tell. After watching the tape, it does look like you got a finger on it, maybe, but Shelby (Harris) did a good job getting his hand up.”
Shelby (Harris) is, you know, even on defense, his hands always seem to find footballs. What is it about him that makes him so good doing that?
“Yeah, I think a lot of times when that happens, you just have, like, that instinct to be able to get your hands up. And for him, he’s got long levers, like, he’s got long arms, so that gives him an advantage.”
How good did it feel seeing Andre (Szmyt) make that kick, knowing everything that he’s been through this past year?
“Yeah, I mean, it’s great. He’s been through a lot, both personally and professionally, so the kid works hard. Said this the last handful of weeks and to get the results we wanted was awesome.”
Bubba, Detroit is very daring and creative offensively. Are they also on special teams?
“Yeah. Yeah, they’re a very aggressive team, so a lot of our preparation will be geared at that.”
Bubba, you had Kaden (Davis) up as kick returner over Dylan (Sampson), what went into that decision for this past week?
“We saw some good things out of Kaden (Davis) in the preseason. He’s got really good speed, so thought his skill set suited us for that matchup.”
Do you anticipate he’ll have that role again this weekend?
“I think that it’s an option. Yeah, I think that it’s an option. Honestly, I think that depending on what our need is going into that week…the practice squad’s an extension on the roster. So, all those guys are preparing every week, like, they’re playing in the game.”
Yeah, we didn’t know about Andre’s (Szmyt) mom until, you know, during the game or after the game. I’m just curious, like, how did you see him handle that when he got back to training camp? And I’m sure you guys are really close. Like, did you see that affect him as everything was going on?
“No, but I think that, you know, that’s a big thing. If that happens and you end up having a loss like that in your family, just having to deal with that alone and then having to go out and perform at a high level on the biggest stage in the world. It’s a credit to the kid. He’s got really good support from his family. I met his girlfriend and his dad in Philly, so just try to support him throughout the whole time.”
It’s kind of gone unnoticed, the way that game ended. But you did have a fake punt there called during the game, didn’t you?
“No.”
Wasn’t there a direct snap out of the punt formation?
“In our game? No.”
Somebody brought it to my attention. I didn’t think so either, but I wanted to make sure.
“No.”
In terms of the physicality, I’m sure that they’re going to bring it on special teams just as much as they do in their other phases of the ball. So, how do you guys have to be ready for that?
“Yeah, they’re coached well. I mean, Dave Fipp is a real good friend of mine. He’s a really good football coach. Coaches really good fundamentals and technique, and they have a lot of really good players. One of their best core guys is a kid that I coached in Indy, Grant Stuard. He kind of runs the show for them. He’s their PP (personal protector). He’s been a returner. He’s a really good blocker. High energy, high effort guy. They all kind of, I feel like, feed off of him in that regard. They’re a fast they’re a physical group that plays through the whistle. So, we’re definitely going to have to match their, I would say, their energy and their physicality and then obviously playing in a hostile environment in the dome is going to be another thing.”
Why do you think there were so many blocked kicks last week across the league? You know, I mean, do you see some kind of trend there that it’s harder to block?
“I do see there that, like, earlier in the season, I feel like you see more, you see more of that type of thing happening. Teams are still trying to figure out their personnel. You have young players playing and/or blocking. So, I think that that factors. Typically, you see more blocks earlier in the season than late.”
Bubba, I think with you guys the first two weeks, just the different issues that arose. The block punt, in this case, the returns. Like to have a game where those guys rebounded the way they did and made some game changing plays for you. Like how key is that in the big picture of a season?
“Yeah, I think it’s just good to get back on track a little bit. We’re still not even remotely close to where we need to be. We’re just trying to get better each week. We need to see more improvement from week to week. We’re going against a really good team this week. So, our focus is all in on Detroit and trying to win this game.”
Bubba, when Andre (Szmyt) kind of goes through what he went through after week one, obviously you guys showed that confidence in him, but how much do you rely on Rex (Sunahara), Corey (Bojorquez) and that entire battery to kind of help guide him through getting to where he did on Sunday?
“I think it’s important that you’re getting support from, you know, obviously your coaches and the guys that are directly involved with that position. So those guys do a good job. They do a good job. I give those guys a good bit of, I would say, freedom relative to being able to prepare for their job. I have a lot of trust in those guys in that room. So, they do a great job in the weight room, they do a great job in the classroom. And then obviously on the field, they’re all hard workers.”
What’s it like for you as a coordinator? On Friday he has the calf injury, has to go get an MRI. Not sure at that moment if he’s going to be available to you. Ultimately he is, but then to have. And then he comes through for you. But just from your perspective, what was that 24 to 36 hours like?
“It’s exactly like what you could imagine. Just the uncertainty on the availability of the player at the time. For really any position that impacts your unit, you’re always ready to have a contingency plan and being able to plan and prep for it if that were to, in the event that something like that were to happen. So, I’m always thinking like, even during a game, like, how are you gonna handle certain situations if you lost this guy. Like you have to have a plan. So, we had a plan in place, and thankfully we didn’t have to execute it.”
Did you actually make contact with another kicker?
“We might have.”
Corey’s (Bojorquez) been around for a while. And what does he mean to that room specifically? In terms of the support he provides, you know, a guy like Andre (Szmyt) or whoever the kicker may be. Just what does he mean in that regard?
“Yeah, I think Corey’s (Bojorquez) definitely, I would say, improved in his ability to have leadership. He was voted as a captain. I think that his personality fits that role well, because I think that he’s kind of like, to a degree, he’s almost like unfazed at times. He’s not like, uptight. He’s not a nervous guy. He’s pretty open and outgoing, I would say. So, I think that factors for it.”
Are you talking to Kevin (Stefanski) when there’s about the…can we run a play snap at a time to get the field goal? You know, Kevin (Stefanski) said 12 is a little short, you know, 15 seconds a lot of teams do. How often do you guys talk about that either right at the moment or during the week?
“Most times we’re talking through those situations before the game. I mean, if it was like a thing based off of like distance or hash or something like that, it may be in game, but, you know, typically you don’t see a lot of like…are you saying like, for like a last second field goal?”
Yeah.
“I mean, Kansas City executed one where the clock started at 17 seconds. That’s pushing it. And thankfully for them, the ball was like closer to midfield, so those guys didn’t have to run it. Like their angle to get to the field is more direct rather than like, say the ball’s at the 20, they’re running from that, like an angle, so you’re almost running further. We’ve always said like, 18 to 22 seconds is really like quote mayday alert.”
How remarkable was it to get that all executed perfectly like that?
“It was great. It was like, I mean, Coach (Kevin Stefanski) shows all those situations every week. Things that happen from throughout the league. If a team handled a situation improperly how it should have been handled, and then, you know, when you’re watching it in your seat, you know, everyone knows the situation. ‘Oh, it’s easy to execute like that,’ whenever you can just see it on tv. It’s not that easy whenever you can actually do it in person and like, do it in like real time. So, for our offense, to give us an opportunity to get into field goal range was. It was great. Joe (Flacco) throws a great ball to Dave (David Njoku). Dave does a great job of not just getting the. Not just getting down but you know, where does he get the ball? He doesn’t throw the ball to the ref he hands the ball to our center who can place the ball. The official taps the ball. Now we can get our clock. So, I mean there’s a lot of stuff that goes into it that goes unnoticed.”
Did you know in real time it looked like. It looked like where like David (Njoku) actually was like like tackled and where he gave the ball to Ethan (Pocic) to kind of place it looked like it was actually like farther back. Did you see that in real time or know that after the fact?
“I did not, no.”
Because it looked like it probably should have been like a 53-yard field goal.
“Did they re-spot it?”
No, I don’t think they did. But it wouldn’t have mattered anyway cause Andre had more than enough leg.
You mentioned, you took us through the emotions of the lead up to Andre (Szmyt). Lead up to that play where you know, you’re pushing the clock. What are your emotions like in that moment?
“I don’t know. But I feel like once, once we converted and we clocked it, like I had no doubt that he was gonna make the kick. Like I had no doubt that he was gonna make it.”
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