Cameron Wake – July 30, 2016
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Saturday, July 30, 2016
Defensive End Cameron Wake
(On how is health is doing) – “That’s the big question. The elephant in the room.
(On how he is feeling coming off an Achilles injury) – “The elephant (Achilles) feels pretty good. It feels like it’s been forever – probably my longest offseason in the history of my playing days. Being able to get back out here, run around, get all the juices flowing – it feels good. There are a lot of things that you can’t really replicate in the bubble or in the rehab. Out here, you get those live action, fast-paced, high-tempo things so (I’m) getting after it and starting to build that toughness. I’m enjoying it.”
(On how he feels about his first step off the line) – “Well, it’s one of those things where you have to work yourself back into it. I’m trying to be smart about doing just enough and finding that sweet spot. You don’t want to kill yourself but you also got to get ready for the season. As you all know, that’s a big weight on my body, a weight on my mind. It’s a lot of stress. So you have to build your way up to it and I think we’re doing well so far.”
(On when the injury happened and what his mind was like at that time) – “Get to the quarterback. That was the only thing on my mind. All the other things are kind of in the distant, distant realm of your thought process. I’ve actually watched the play once. Even after (the injury), I still tried to get the job done on one foot but I didn’t really have anything left. I went down and the guys came and got me and from then on, it was all about doing everything I can to get back on the field.”
(On whether he knew right away what his injury was when it happened) – “As soon as it happened, I knew.”
(On if it is tough to deal with limited reps in practice) –“You got to look at the big picture. You can’t be a guy who just thinks about today; you got to think about December and being smart about what we’re doing now and having a plan. You can’t just go out here and say, ‘All right, first day, let’s do 100 reps.’ You got to make sure that you take the right steps. We’ve got a great staff here who has obviously been working really closely with me and making sure those things happen. You got to kind of turn that wild animal down a little bit and try to think long term and make sure that come December, whatever date, in the fourth quarter, you’re full go. That’s my goal and so far I think we’re doing the right thing.”
(On whether 40-45 snaps is enough) – “Enough to do whatever I can to help the team win will be enough. I’ve never had a number. Some days I’ve had 80 snaps and there have been days when I haven’t had that many; but when I’m out there, just doing whatever you can to make those snaps the best snaps, that’s all I’m really concerned about.”
(On anticipating having fewer snaps) –“You’re talking distant future. I don’t know. You’d have to ask some of the guys who kind of make more of those decisions. Until they put another zero on my check, I don’t think I have that power yet.”
(On the mental stress of the rehab) – “The funny thing is the physical part – I’m not going to say it’s easy – but it’s something that you’re very used to. I’ve built muscle throughout my life – built strength, you run, you lift – all of those things are part of your daily routine, part of your job description. Muscle fatigue, feeling that burn, so to speak is not new. Running is not new. Lifting weights is not new. Being mentally strong when you can’t get out of bed and you have to put your feet up for 30 hours a day, that’s the hard part. Watching your team play and you’re not out there, that’s the hard part. Being on crutches, being a little more dependent, when you’re kind of an independent guy, those are the hard things. It wasn’t the physical part at all that was an issue. I’ve always tried my best in the offseason to stress myself, to challenge myself. But the part where you’re kind of out of the game and you’re limited mentally, those are the issues that you’ve got to deal with more than the physical ones.”
(On what he was thinking about during the 30 hours he was sitting with his feet up) – “That was the hardest part, to be honest. It was that time when I was, quote-unquote, immobile. I’m not a guy who watches TV. I don’t sit in bed. I’m not built that way. So for a doctor to say, ‘Hey, you can’t work out. You can’t get out of bed. You can’t walk around, you can’t, can’t, can’t…’ that’s like a four letter word – can’t – to me. I just wanted to get up. I wanted to do one-legged hops up and down my stairs in my room. But obviously, you have to think long-term. You have to think about December and next year and so-on and so-forth, and be smart. That next level of intellect had to overcome that raging beast that I feel like I am and calm myself down and do the right thing.”
(On how he got over the hump and if there were vital people involved with that process) – “I have people close to me – a support system, family members – who have been there for me from Day 1. There are times where maybe you want to go get something out of the kitchen or whatever it is, and you can’t. Those are the people who help you; the days that you’re down and thinking about the things that you’re missing out on, they’re the ones who are there for you. In this world, there are not many people you can rely on, but I have people who I can, that I trust, and those are the people who got me through.”
(On what a typical rehab day would look like for him) – “It depends on which stage of rehab. The first stage is just sitting in bed and doing nothing. That’s post-surgery. That was the hardest part. I actually enjoyed the, ‘Get up, go to training room, ride the bike or job on the treadmill, do some calf exercises, start plyos, change of direction, ladder drills.’ All of those things that you kind of build yourself up, those are the things that I enjoy. That’s football. That’s what we do. That’s what I’m about to go do right now. It’s not abnormal to lift weights or run or do plyos. Sitting in bed and being still, that was the abnormal part. A typical day wasn’t much different than a typical offseason day for me, where you get up, eat, train, take a break, you rest and train again. It’s just you focus more on that injured part of your body than you would do if you were working on a total body in the regular season.”
(On what point he knew that he could come back and play) – “The second the play (the injury occurred on) happened.”
(On the addition of DE Mario Williams to the defensive line unit) – “On paper, it’s amazing. But obviously, it’s not your first rodeo with me. Paper has never won a football game and you have to go out there, as we’re doing right now, starting yesterday, go out there and put all of those pieces together to make it impressive. Right now, it’s just – I don’t know – fantasy football. I don’t know what it is, but it’s not anything tangible until we go out there and we start knocking heads. That’s when I start being impressed.”
(On the size of DE Mario Williams) – “That’s a lot of individual to deal with and I’m glad he’s on our side, causing problems for our offense. I’m glad we have (offensive) guys who are able to go against the likes of him and Ndamukong) Suh and myself and (Andre) Branch – and so on, and so on and so on – because I feel like that’s the real key to make everybody better. Come Sundays, when I got to look across and see those guys blocking X and Y-Z teams, I know, ‘Hey, you got the best of the best in practice so today should be in our favor.’
