Bill Belichick typically isn’t the most loquacious head coach. That changed when a reporter inquired about long snappers.
The Boston Globe‘s Ben Volin asked Belichick why NFL teams devote a roster spot to a player who specializes in snapping. He wondered if it’d make more sense to train players at other positions.
Belichick could have shrugged off the random question and said he’s just focused on Sunday’s matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles. Instead, he answered for nearly 10 minutes.
The six-time Super Bowl champion gave a history lesson on the position. He noted that kickers and punters previously played elsewhere before focusing on those crafts and posited that Steve DeOssie was the “key guy” in changing long-snapping.
“Is it that hard? It’s a pretty hard job, yeah,” Belichick said. “It’s a pretty hard job.”
Here’s a look at his full response, via Michael Girdley.
This video is insane.
And a great teaching moment.
Reporter asks Bill Belichick (6x Super Bowl coach):
“Why have a long-snapper on the roster?”
Bill gives a 10-minute speech on it on the spot.
The greatest CEOs think so deeply about their craft it’s almost weird. pic.twitter.com/x7ZSUKrH1c
— Michael Girdley (@girdley) September 5, 2023
Belichick explained how spread formations altered punt-blocking schemes and put more pressure on snappers. That prompted teams to desire a more skilled (and durable) snapper.
The 71-year-old expanded on why snapping is more difficult than it seems.
“He not only has to snap, so that gets into whether you’re a blind snapper and you look at the rush and just snap the ball or whether you’re a look-back snapper and snap it,” Belichick said. “And then after the snap you have to look up and recognize what’s happened and make the proper block.”
Belichick added that this evolution led to punters holding for kickers. Those players can thus work together on special teams throughout practice rather than waiting for players from other positions to become available.
These formations operate at a high level, rightfully so since nobody knows or cares about the long snapper unless he messes up.
“There’s just a much higher level of skill, which there should be,” Belichick said. “But yeah, I think it’s a pretty tough position.”
If this were a sitcom, the camera would pan to an empty conference room as Belichick continued to talk about long snapping. However, Volin thanked the coach for a response “as thorough and in-depth as I had hoped it would be.”
“Cool to see this getting some play today,” Volin wrote on Twitter. “Could listen to Belichick talk about long snappers all day.”