Former Patriots' GOAT long snapper, Lonie Paxton, joins! Paxton talks about Tom Brady, including the 'Brady Roast'. What did Paxton think of Belichick. What does Wiggy think of long snappers?
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00:00yeah here apparently to record a commercial or two it is the great Lonnie Paxton Lonnie hello
00:06let's go how long how long has it been well how long has it been since you've seen Wiggy
00:11I it's probably been when was the last time you and I saw Tom's event yeah Tom's event man that
00:16was like that was good for the soul man we went back and there was like a hundred and something
00:20guys there and families it was so nice you got invited to everything I you know I'm America's
00:25guest you know some some some people some people didn't get invited to get stuff and it's that
00:32west coast circle man Brady circles west coast and then they'll see he'll sprinkle Gronkin yeah
00:37yeah yeah he's kind of bi-coastal too yeah but he's more of you know Jules is a west coast guy
00:42Lonnie's a west coast guy so he's a good time that's how you explain that well he's gonna be
00:46in the circle I'm on the outside looking in but believe me it's a beautiful circle to be in if
00:51you can get in there so in case you don't know I don't know why you wouldn't arguably the greatest
00:57long snapper in the history of the NFL Lonnie Baxter I don't know who else is in the running
01:03well I mean you know difference between the worst long snapper the best long snapper could be with
01:07just one play so I'll take the best the man credited for the invention of the snow angel
01:16as a as an NFL celebration take that um and what are you doing now what are you doing man so when
01:24I got done playing I worked at GoPro I was leading their global sports entertainment and traveling
01:28the world had athletes and and and money to do things and then they cut everyone in 2020 so since
01:33then I've been business developing helping some uh companies raise money um helping some charities
01:39got a film project coming out about the comeback from brain injuries um and I spent a lot of time
01:44in Boston doing media projects or uh charitable work um so I love coming back here I married a
01:49girl from here so it's yeah one of those things you just there's family out here right yeah was
01:54she a cheerleader as well she was yeah I always I remember that wow you and Bill both dating
01:59cheerleaders I mean you know I think I started the trend you know and then it went to Gronk and
02:04yeah you know just graduated cheerleaders are the best wasn't that I thought that was against the
02:08rules uh she got she got clipped but you know it really worked out yeah it worked out it worked
02:14out in the end for her yeah I mean how long how long were you able to keep it a secret for see
02:20that's the thing I think she got snitched on you know oh one of the other one terrible yeah the
02:25jealous ones yeah I think it was a job you know we were out in Boston I was kind of like hey maybe
02:30we shouldn't do this and you know but who's gonna I'm not Tom Brady like who's gonna recognize me
02:35and I think she drove my truck I used to drive the big you know had like 35 inch wheels eight
02:40inch lift the biggest truck in Boston yes she drove it to practice one day I was like babe I
02:44don't know if that was probably the right move but big truck small d that's what they say yeah
02:50I don't say it but
02:53you just did yes I did he just told us that big noses mean that you have a big
02:58uh downstairs well science said it I didn't tell you that that's a new big hands big gloves
03:03no he says the hands don't matter no hands don't matter what is the uh if you if you could for
03:08those to be honest Greg spends an inordinate amount of time thinking about other men's Johnson
03:12for those that are aspiring long snappers uh maybe listening right now what is the single key if you
03:19were going to uh suggest the single key to being a successful long snapper what would it be oh
03:26it's is it velocity is it no is it grip uh is well I mean obviously repetitions that you you
03:33got to do it a bunch in weather you got to do a bunch in with wet balls you got to do it with
03:38you know in situations but I think it's placement you know because a lot of times you could have the
03:45fastest snap in the world but if it's if it's off to the side or low it throws the punters uh you
03:50know rhythm off so I always prided myself on a tight spiral in placement it's the accuracy of
03:56everything yeah yeah I mean I I used to you know I can say it's now I'm retired but I used to win
04:01thousands of dollars uh uh throwing these things in buckets and I turned off a light switch one
04:06time in the locker room like you know in a couple tries it wasn't like the first try on some of
04:10these things but you were able to you were able to snap a ball and shut a light switch off yeah
04:15yeah I had witnesses too it wasn't just like me doing it now telling the story one like five
04:19ran for that I hope uh well from Tommy I might have uh won something but you know
04:24that's for off mic but we uh I would always have uh a ball with me ironically like cruising the
04:30beach in California or or messing around uh you know I'd have one in my truck and guys would
04:35inherently say hey see if you can hit that stop sign from 20 yards away and so we'd come out when
04:39Dable was there we'd play we'd just call it the aim game we'd be out pre-practice like hey man hit
04:43his hit his knee three times you know and I'd get it or hit put it on his left shoulder twice you
04:49know and I'd miss a few times but that helped me kind of find that placement and know how I had to
04:54let the ball go to put it where I want and talk about job security if you can do it and you can
04:58do it well you'll do it for a long time yeah you'll do it for a long time this is you know
05:05probably one of the most job secure you know places to be when you're thinking about in the
05:09NFL is the long snap well you just no one wants to do it either there's only 32 of us and everyone
05:14gets out in the practice like ah that's easy I could do it but when it really comes down to it
05:18and it's six inches of snow and it's time to you know kick a 48 yard field goal no one really wants
05:23that job that's all about practice yeah it's practice and also I'm sure that when Wiggy
05:27started talking in the locker room you would just go outside and practice to get away from him
05:34well they were in their own little section anyways of practice
05:38yeah I used to look over there and go damn I should have been a long snap
05:40did you have any respect to be honest for the long snapper well we the
05:50kickers and everything they were over there just be honest we were working we didn't look at them
05:55as football players that's why I wore a 60s number right I played o-line in high school and college
06:02started every year and so I got demoted to be just the long snapper but I kept a 60s number
06:08so I felt like I was kind of part of the fat boys but obviously I'm standing there half the time I'm
06:14like what really am I doing right now and we look over there and go damn I wish I was a long snapper
06:20right now and then you gotta listen to this and listen to that and scream and so it's like
06:24it's fun though I think the long snapper did pretty damn good for himself going home with
06:27the cheerleader yeah I mean they put us right there next to him so this is their fault this
06:34is not my fault that's the best thing about it uh you are very close to Tom how do you think he's
06:40going to do on television I think it's going to be great I mean um obviously television and I'm
06:45probably well you probably figured out this out it's like you can't play the middle for the longest
06:49time you want to but it's it's really what sets guys aside because Teddy was that way for a long
06:56time just play down the middle play down the middle because because you're reluctant to
07:00criticize right and that's what some guys don't go into the media for you don't want to criticize
07:05but I think Tom's perspective on a lot of things I don't even think he's going to go that route
07:09it's more like the tactics of it and you know get into his head about situational stuff which is
07:14like what Bill does if you can just be yourself and I Tom obviously does that and if he criticizes
07:20from the place of like oh here's how I would criticize me if I messed up I think that's
07:24you know that's the best way of doing guys don't feel it as being that bad but you don't think
07:29he's going to hold back like during games I think he'll call people out if they need to be called
07:34out I think he will because that's what people want to hear because they know that you know he'd
07:37call himself yeah right does it surprise you when it comes to Bill how much he is doing whether
07:45yes it does yeah I mean the guy is like a shock no media to now four shows right um but maybe
07:53that's what his plan was all along like I'm gonna hide this stuff until the very end and then I'm
07:59gonna come out and get paid for it and kill it yeah did you see did you talk to him at I'm sure
08:04you talked to him at that Tom Brady at the roast while we talked at the roast oh you talked the
08:08road yeah yeah you were there at the road yeah that that was that was savage is what that was
08:14man yeah that was cool to see everybody but it was a it was a cool moment as well like the whole
08:19toasting with craft and like I mean that was real tequila yeah it was real tequila oh yeah that was
08:25tequila straight a lot of the times but it was it was fun and you got a chance to see him and
08:29it's different now when you see him right it's like on the field it's like the the emperor
08:34walking around like you don't want to look him in the eyes right and then and then you get off
08:38field you get retired it's like hey lp what's up and he's like like a completely you know he really
08:44is a completely different guy were you afraid of him oh hell yeah yeah because I I'm I'm don't I
08:49don't have a ton of product to put out there to judge so you know in punt team one day it might
08:55be 10 snaps right in the game it might be eight so like I have limited chances for error so I felt
09:01every I mean I was here nine seasons I felt every day I was getting cut pressure is crazy I couldn't
09:06even buy a house for a lot of times like I've signed a five-year deal not buying a house because
09:09I might be gone tomorrow did you feel like you got screwed in dynasty me yeah no you don't think
09:15bill did oh oh bill yeah what do you think bill um I think that was a con job honestly yeah I mean
09:21the dynasty a lot of guys will look at that and say not the whole story came out it was it was
09:26exactly what a lot of these kind of big corporate media do they try to push a narrative and fit
09:32everyone I mean jewel said he sat in a chair for six seven hours and only got like 30 seconds on
09:37camera because you know drama sells that's what it sells yeah that's what they want to hear the
09:40first two episodes though man that brought me back yeah I was like all my kids are crying like
09:45dad there you are those are the only episodes we need to watch yeah that's it after the first
09:52two episodes it goes downhill you don't even watch anything else I'm always interested Lonnie
09:57guys on that team that changed everything not just with the Patriots but Boston sports
10:01really shifted when the Patriots won that championship but then led to two decades of
10:05unprecedented success when watching those things when did you know that you had something special
10:12like was it only after you won the Super Bowl was it at a point during that regular season
10:16when did you think the Patriots who had no expectations were a team that could actually
10:20you know do a snow angel in the divisional playoff game man I it to me it was I hadn't
10:27remembered a lot of that stuff and I was watching it watching the old footage and the narratives you
10:31know so you don't try to play into that stuff when it's in real time and then looking back and
10:36obviously the drama of Drew and Tom and then you know the vets stepping up for Tom to just
10:43be like hey man just okay we're going with you and let's pick up our game and not put too much
10:48pressure on him I thought you know just rallying around that moment in Boston sports and obviously
10:53with 9-11 and all of the stuff in America and being the Patriots and be able to you know come
11:01out on top in the in the in the last game of Fox Pro Stadium and then in the Super Bowl that just
11:06solidified that you know you can do it yeah the next year we didn't make the playoffs but
11:10there was some roster changes and that came along the way so I mean I thought that just that
11:15transition from Drew to Tom and standing up for your beliefs and I think it's this kid and actually
11:21like showing toughness you know looking back that was a hard choice to make Tom over Drew like really
11:27hard that could have sent people well because because Wiggy was over there saying you're just
11:31the kicker be quiet that's why I didn't look at it you're hanging out with the kickers
11:37we don't want to hear from you we sure would have remembered Lonnie if he had a bad snap on
11:40the 48-yard field goal to hit oh yeah that was that was I think it's under it's underappreciated
11:46yeah the role is just we we make it look easy because that's what we do all day long and
11:51um when it when it does go wrong people are scrambling they're snapping on the side
11:55they're like this announcers oh did you see that idiot over there just throw it over his head and
11:59right um you know I remember when I got hurt they it was like a one-week process to find a
12:06guy because there's guys on the street they don't trust that's why they're on the street
12:09did you see that uh great patriots uh short episode on the elementary school teacher
12:17that was the long snapper for the super bowl and against the panthers
12:20yeah kinchin um who sliced his finger open the morning of the super bowl yeah he was
12:27buttering a bagel with a steak knife oh and this was the year I tore my acl with another guy got
12:32hurt they brought another guy didn't make it and then this guy hadn't played for three years well
12:36the dude who hit the 66-yard field goal over the weekend was like like tried out for an mls team
12:45has like and was like he I think he was a teacher also like a chemistry teacher or something like
12:51that we got a lot of extra time yeah specialist we gotta be able to do special teams because when
12:57somebody gets hurt like you said they're scrambling and then they ask every player
13:00hey has anybody snapped yeah you know everybody like for titans like yeah well I snapped that
13:04was the backup in college and then it's like a couple snaps silver all right we get a figure
13:09I remember I tore my acl uh against the dolphins when you know the snowball game and teddy had to
13:15pick six uh tore my acl early third quarter and I couldn't move but I'm like limping around and
13:22and Russ Hochstein's over there strapping his helmet on like I'm going up he does it in practice
13:27like
13:35because the game has changed now like you can't even touch the long snapper no more
13:39back when we play forget it was like just as soon as the ball snapped trying to run them over the
13:44easiest I mean I got my head between my legs you know I ain't even looking at you and Tom didn't
13:49didn't feel the need to make you put a towel back there or a talcum powder and I did some
13:54seven on seven center stuff and I put a towel back there you put a towel back there for Tom
13:57Brady's I didn't do the old uh you know coping trick where he'd just go no underwear and see
14:04what happens but all right it's why I wanted to stay in the circle yeah I think probably if a guy
14:12is uh making contact with you in that area while a football is being snapped you're always in the
14:18circle I would say yeah always you're always you need to be yeah as close as you need all right
14:22well listen it's great to see you you're doing a commercial we should mention you're here uh doing
14:26some commercials for yeah East Coast Metal Roof East Coast yeah just just helping my boy Paul out
14:31and great guy you know like yeah exactly like to like to help those guys out and we golfed at
14:36Big Poppy's event Marco Island and had a rip-roaring time so more I can do to help all the business
14:41leaders here community here I love doing that all right Lonnie Paxton awesome to see you thank you
14:45brother all right the time boys we'll take uh we'll take a man girls please oh god don't start
14:51because as soon as you leave the studio she's gonna be like oh my god I can't I love it
14:55Lonnie came in here said hi guys didn't say hi girl nope guys it's fine guys is encompassing
15:02gentlemen is tough that's just think about it you were a cheerleader at bc you missed
15:06your opportunity by like a year yeah he landed himself a nice one no good looking long snappers
15:12no I did it I did the quarterback excuse us
15:20we're basically an upside down yeah that's defined dated yeah all right