CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The last few years the Browns special teams unit has been anything but special.
New assistant head coach and special teams coordinator Ray “Bubba” Ventrone aims to change that in a hurry this year.
Here are a few takeaways from Ventrone’s introductory press conference conducted over Zoom Thursday afternoon.
1. Like any other business, the NFL is all about familiarity which brought Ventrone, who starred as a special teams ace for the Browns from 2009-2012, back to Cleveland. “Bubba and I have known each other for a long time going back to his days patrolling the secondary for the Villanova Wildcats,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said as he introduced Ventrone. “A great football player, a great person. Has done an amazing job as a coordinator in this league for a bunch of years. A really impressive track record. It goes back to his career. He was a special teamer, and he knows the work that goes into that and how important it is to winning and losing.”
2. Ventrone’s top priority is turning around a unit that was dead last in punt coverage and ranked 18th overall last year while failing to make critical or meaningful plays and struggled mightily at times in the return game. His philosophical approach is simple. “My message to the team is going to be, ‘Look, if we are going to be a good unit top to bottom, we need contributions from everybody,” Ventrone said. “Whether you are on the field goal block unit, the field goal unit or you are a starter that plays in one or two phases, everybody has to be willing to do their part. If everybody is willing to do their part and no one is going to balk at being on the field for a kicking play, then I think you have an opportunity. You need the buy in. That is what I am hoping that I can get out of everybody. I feel like I am pretty demanding of what I want. I am going to coach everybody the same. I will coach hard. I am going to coach the crap out of techniques and fundamentals, and ultimately, that is going to give us the results we want on the field.”
3. As the league’s transaction season and new league year begins next week, Ventrone’s input with EVP/GM Andrew Berry will be valuable. “I feel like that is one of the strongest things I bring as a football coach and as a former player is my ability to evaluate talent,” Ventrone said. “I feel like I have done a good job in my history both in New England and Indianapolis of not just at the highest level within the draft but undrafted players. I have been able to identify those types of players and develop them into All-Pros in Indianapolis in [Colts receiver) Ashton Dulin and [49ers safety] George Odum. I am excited about bringing what I feel like is a good eye for the football game here.”
4. So what type of player does Ventrone look for on special teams? What he said Thursday might sound familiar. “You want to have aggressive, tough, smart, disciplined players who understand how the game is being officiated and how the game needs to be played,” Ventrone said.
5. Get used to hearing the words fundamentals and technique from Ventrone. They are at the core of his philosophical beliefs. “I am big, big, big – we will drill it to death – on the fundamentals of the game: footwork, hat placement and playing with the base,” Ventrone said. “I am going to emphasize that ad nauseam to our players, and ultimately, that is going to get us the best results. You can’t do anything unless you have good fundamentals and technique. That starts from Day 1.”
6. Straightening out kicker Cade York after a roller coaster of a rookie season that saw York struggle at home is also on the to-do list.
Ventrone had York as his top-rated kicker entering the 2022 draft. York is a perfectionist, which can be a gift and a curse. “I feel like the best guys, the guys that have the most successful and the best kickers – I have been around quite a bit [Browns Legend] Phil Dawson, [former NFL kicker Adam] Vinatieri, [former NFL kicker Stephen] Gostkowski – and the guys who I have coached in Indianapolis – Chase [McLaughlin] this past year-had a good year and [Lions kicker Michael] Badgley – those guys have done a good job of putting misses to bed and moving on and not being so caught up in missing a kick,” Ventrone said. “It is how fast you can make the correction and then move on to the next kick. I have not had a chance to sit down and actually meet with Cade, but that will be one of the things that I am going to influence for him.”
7. Fake field goals, fake punts, onside kicks – the gimmick plays that can change the outcome of a game haven’t gone the Browns way in recent years. How does Ventrone feel about using and calling them in games? “If you are playing a team that is disciplined and is more sound in the looks that they are giving you, then you are probably not going to have those opportunities, if they arise,” Ventrone said. “Obviously, we are always looking to impact the game in some way, shape or form. If anything like that were to come about, obviously we would be willing to do something along those lines. I feel like when you are searching to get those, they are probably not going to come about. They have to really present themselves based on personnel, scheme and unsound football to a degree.”
8. While Ventrone is focused on his new job with the Browns, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have greater aspirations. “Yeah, I have aspirations to be a head coach at some point, but honestly, my sole focus right now is getting this core unit and these specialists going,” Ventrone said. “I am excited for this opportunity. I cannot wait. I am so excited to be back in Cleveland and have this opportunity. I can’t express it enough.”