First, tell me a bit about what you’re doing with yourself now – what are the next steps for you?
Well, football-wise, I’m staying ready, staying in shape in case I get the phone rings. Even when I was with the AAF in Memphis, I was just staying ready. That’s all you can do is stay ready until a team hopefully asks you to come in.
I have other things going on too. I have a couple of business ventures with friends, but it’s a little early to talk about those right now.
How hard is it, waiting and just staying ready in hopes for that next call?
It is difficult. It’s something you don’t – you cant plan for. It’s tough not being in that routine of OTAs, camp, then the season. Now I have to have my own programs to stay ready and in shape. It’s different in that regard. There’s no shortage of motivation that’s for sure. But it is frustrating.
How did things get started in Pittsburgh after having started your career with the Eagles?
My first year in Philadelphia, I didn’t make the team. Not everybody knows that. The entire preseason, they had a veteran punter Donnie Jones who was in I think his 15th season in the NFL. I just wasn’t ready. Donnie outperformed me in most games and practices. I may have had a few better days, but that was it. He just had the better body of work. Chip Kelly told me when I was cut that I have a future in the league and not to give up though.
I spent that season traveling all over the country – I had 11 different workouts for teams. That kept my name alive. It kept me going. I finally got a workout for Pittsburgh and they offered to sign me on the spot, right there.
I had three offers at the time – from San Francisco, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo. Buffalo wanted me to fly out there again but to be honest, I didn’t bother. I had a good offer and hit if off right away with Coach Tomlin and Danny Smith. There was no point looking further. It was a blessing to be able to chose from three teams – to have that freedom. But I was happy to choose the Steelers.
Anyone help take you under their wing as a first year guy in Pittsburgh?
Shaun Suisham and Greg Warren were good with all of that stuff from day one. I still tell people how lucky I was to have them there. They had so much experience to offer me.
They helped me with things like what to expect physically through the season and how to prepare mentally. And how to prepare for games. Shaun as a kicker, and me as a punter, to have the knowledge of the different stadiums and how different weather affects the kicking situations was huge. They also helped me understand better how to gameplan and find my own rhythm in preparing for games.
You are the first Australian to be responsible for points being scored in the NFL. How did that occur?
I didn’t know it when it happened that that was the case. It wasn’t planned. Each week in practice we have fire calls when we practice field goals in case something bad happened. It’s the plan B that causes a change in responsibility for some of the guys who have to go out for passes instead of blocking. Well, I was just lucky Matt Spaeth caught my eye on the play. Warren snapped a perfect snap to me and I just bobbled it. You couldn’t tell what happened during the game, but in film you could see it. It was my fault – no excuses. But I got the ball to a wide open Matt Spaeth who did a good job getting wide open. It wasn’t pretty!
Special teams guys often have a lot of extra time in practice. What do you do with that time?
You try to be as present as possible, if f that makes sense. You want to be seen doing as much as you can. You have more freedom but you don’t want to abuse that free time. I tried to put it back in the team with extra film study. As a punter, I’d also watch kickoffs and returns to help the guys in meetings with what I saw. To try and explain some of the blocking concepts. Any way I could to give back.
Any fun memories/jokes you can share of you time there?
We did have a lot of time on our hands. I remember one time there was a rookie – I forget who it was – but they filled his entire car with bubble gum. Danny Smith was a big gum chewer and he was a special teams guy so they decided to fill the rookie’s car with 3,000 pieces of gum! He couldn’t even get in the car.
Also, I remember meeting James Harrison for the first time. He was a big old fella. I walked up to him and introduced myself: “Hi James, I’m Brad.” He told me that the last punter had two jobs. To punt and wash his back after every practice! I just said “What kind of soap do you like James?” He laughed and said it was the right answer! After that he and I became great friends. I joke with him still that one day I’d box his kid when he hits 30, and I may have a chance at beating him.
What do you think of the rule changes going on with special teams in the NFL?
I was part of the AAF and they took extra points and kickoffs out of the game. It was weird. You’re used to starting the game with some pumping up before the kickoff, It was anti-climatic. I just think it’s an important part of the game and don’t think they should change it so much.
Any preference on where you’d like to play if you could return to the NFL?
I always said that Pittsburgh was my favorite place on many levels. I know and love the coaches that are still there. It was such a well-rounded team when I was there. You don’t always get a choice on where to play but it would be a blessing if I had a chance to go back again.
What from your perspective makes the team such a great place to play?
When I was there, we all knew we were a part of something bigger than ourselves. You’d walk in and see those Lombardi Trophies – it’d hit you in the face. We all knew we were a part of something big. Even the fans took it seriously. They were so serious about their team – just the sense of urgency in what the team means to the city. We’d carry ourselves in a different way knowing that. And they had fans everywhere – something I learned when I played!
Lastly, what part from your perspective does Coach Tomlin have in that culture. Does he get too close to guys?
He’s so well respected. He does a great job balancing things – he’s like a player and a coach. He’s a guy you can have dinner with and forget he’s a coach, he’s so approachable. As an Australian, there were some things I couldn’t relate to when I got there. But I was at his house for dinner and it felt like I knew him for a long time, even though I just got there.
You knew he had your back. And that made us want to play harder for him.
But can you get to close to your players as a coach?
At the end of the day it’s a business. You hold that above the personal relationships at the end of the day. As a player, you know that you can be close, but you still know it’s a business and don’t let it get too personal
Read more by former Steelers via the book Steelers Takeaways: Player Memories Through the Decades. To order, just click on the book:
