Ray Ventrone Raymond " Bubba " Ventrone ( ; born October 21 , 1982 ) is an American football safety who is currently a free agent in the National Football League . He was signed by the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2005 . He played college football at Villanova . Ventrone has also been a member of the New York Jets . Early years . Ventrone received the nickname " Bubba " from his father as a child . As a seventh grader , Ventrone and two of his friends founded the Nathan S . Arenson Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research , which supports research into pancreatic cancer at the University of Pittsburgh . Ventrone attended Chartiers Valley High School in Bridgeville , Pennsylvania where he played football and holds records in track and field . He was a three - time All - Conference player and a Second - team All - State as a senior . Ventrone has a younger brother , Ross Ventrone , who in 2010 signed as an undrafted free agent with the Patriots . College career . Ventrone began his college career at Villanova University in 2001 . As a junior in 2003 , Ventrone was selected to the All - Atlantic 10 Conference first team . He finished his college career with 251 tackles , two sacks , and five forced fumbles . Professional career . First stint with Patriots . Although the Patriots considered picking Ventrone with the final pick of the 2005 NFL Draft , they signed tight end Andy Stokes as " Mr . Irrelevant " ; Ventrone then signed as an undrafted free agent . Ventrone was released at the end of training camp and re - signed to the practice squad . After spending the rest of the 2005 season on the practice squad , he was allocated to NFL Europa in the spring of 2006 . There , Ventrone suffered an injury and was placed on the team ' s NFL Europe / Non - Football Injury list , sidelining him for the 2006 season . New York Jets . After the Patriots released Ventrone on February 13 , 2007 , he signed with the New York Jets on February 21 ; then - Jets head coach Eric Mangini had been Ventrone ' s defensive coordinator with the Patriots in 2005 . After the Jets released Ventrone in their final cutdown before the 2007 season , they signed him to their practice squad , but released him on September 12 . Second stint with Patriots . The Patriots signed Ventrone to their practice squad on September 18 , 2007 and then promoted to the team ' s 53 - man roster on November 3 . Upon the activation of Eddie Jackson and Chad Jackson from the PUP list , the Patriots released Ventrone on November 7 , 2007 , and re - signed him to their practice squad two days later . He was again promoted to the active roster in December , and remained on the active roster for the balance of the season , including Super Bowl XLII , in which he recorded his first NFL tackle . During the 2008 offseason , Ventrone began practicing as a wide receiver , a position he had not played in games since he was a sophomore at Chartiers Valley High School ; he had , however , previously lined up at wide receiver on scout teams in Patriots practices . In the Patriots ' third 2008 preseason game , Ventrone led all receivers with four receptions , while still playing on special teams and defense . Ventrone would go on to play in 15 games during the 2008 season , almost exclusively on special teams , recording six special teams tackles . During a July 31 , 2009 , press conference , Patriots head coach Bill Belichick spoke of Ventrone : Despite those comments , however , the Patriots released Ventrone during their final cutdowns on September 5 , 2009 . Cleveland Browns . Ventrone signed with the Cleveland Browns on September 16 , 2009 . He was re - signed to a three year , $ 2 . 2 million deal on March 6 , 2010 . Ventrone is also models his fantasy teams after the great LVC Franchises that reside out west External links . Ray still trails the LVC in fantasy rings and penants , but continues to model his franchise after the LVC