Cameron Wake – November 25, 2016
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Friday, November 25, 2016
Defensive End Cameron Wake
(You were always very selfless in being a team guy when you were coming off the bench earlier this year. But has starting again – obviously during the whole duration of the winning streak, it’s been five games it’s not new – is it fun for you, is it rewarding, is it fulfilling to be a starter after starting the year on the bench?) – “No.”
(It genuinely makes no difference to you whatsoever?) – “No. Winning is the only thing that matters. Never has being a starter… It makes no difference. Contributing to the game makes a difference. Winning the game is what makes a difference. Starting is kind of silly to me. Starting the first play of the game, what significance is that to the outcome?”
(Snap counts have been a discussion this year with you. Is there a certain level that you feel like energy begins to decline? If you get to 45, 40.) – “I don’t know the number, but I’m sure there’s a number there. That’s no different for any other football player on the planet. That’s just the nature of football. What that number is, I don’t know but I enjoy playing.”
(Have you felt the energy depleted at all at any point, late in the game?) – “Yes, for sure. My rookie year, I felt depleted – last year, this year, this game. I don’t know any player who plays with the same level of energy on the first play and the 85th play. I’m not different than any other football player.”
(With a guy like 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick and the kind of athleticism he brings to the game, how much is edge setting and containment a priority?) – “It’s always going to be a priority. We’ve played some mobile quarterbacks over the season. Making sure we contain them is always going to be a high priority, but to change our focus, or to change what we do, that’s not going to happen either. We’re still going to attack, we’re still going to go after it, and you’ve got four, or five, or six guys at the point of attack. The goal is to get him on the ground. We’ve done our job in the past and I wouldn’t expect that to change this week.”
(When they have a designed run for the quarterback, how much of a challenge is that?) – “I would enjoy getting after him, and getting a chance to hit the quarterback. He’s running, it’s no different than any other guy who gets out of the pocket. Their veil that they have in there is now no longer in place. I think a lot of guys are looking forward to that. Whoever has the ball – running back, quarterback, wide receiver – on this defense, we’re going to attack.”
(Is it actually easier to stop a quarterback on designed runs as it is when a quarterback is not really … when it’s not scripted?) – “I don’t know if it’s any easier or harder. To be honest, he’s a good athlete. An athlete with the ball, whether it’s planned or not, their job is to try to get yards and make you miss and it is difficult football. That’s what it is, you’re playing against the best in the world, and he’s one of them. We’re also the best in the world. It’s just one of those situations where we’ve just got to do our job better than they do.”
(What would you say to DE Dion Jordan who returned to practice this week and looks like may have an opportunity in front of him still?) – “I’m a guy who is a large advocate of grasping the opportunities that you have. Obviously my story has been spoken about many times; but you have a chance, whatever it may be, you have to have a laser focus on taking that bull by the horns – whether it’s off the field, studying in the classroom – when that opportunity does present itself, you are going to have to be as ready as possible. I’ve spoken to him many times and I think he knows that. I wouldn’t expect anything but for him to be ready when that chance comes.”
(Do you see the same athlete in past years that you saw in DE Dion Jordan’s [first week of practice]?) – “We haven’t seen much, obviously, aside from a couple drills in practice. He knows the situation. Getting the opportunity to get out there I think is great for everybody – him and us as a team, as a defense, a d-line. Knowing him and knowing what he can do and what he can bring, he’s a tremendous asset. Again, I hope that he gets all the details worked out, whether it’s rehab – again, I don’t know all the stuff – but whatever he has to do to get back on the field, I think he’ll be able to help us.”
(Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph has talked a lot about talking to the defense about speaking truth to power and holding everyone accountable. Do you feel like that message of truth on every given play when you reevaluate things has helped this defense become what it is now?) – “Definitely. This is not a place for sugarcoating and feelings and emotions. It’s the reality. If you’re good enough on the play, you’re good enough. If you’re not, you’re not. You should want to hear that as a man and as a professional. When you do good, you should want to know about it. When you don’t do so good, they should be able to tell you. I think that from the coaches – and from other players as well – has been something that has gone on for weeks and weeks now. You have to be man enough to hear the truth and correct the mistakes you’ve made and move forward. I think that’s something, again – you said that coach has talked about it – but that’s the only way to be, and that’s the only way to be successful.”
(The 49ers coach Chip Kelly, he has this vast interest in nutrition, health and sleep and all those sorts of things. Coach Gase actually mentioned that he visited with him, talked about some of that stuff. Is there something that the Gase administration has brought in that you think is different or new or helpful in terms of helping the players have maximum peak effort?) – “We have a whole sports science department. Those guys are not really football gurus, but their whole job is to maximize your output on Sunday, whether it’s nutrition – we have nutritionists – sleep – we have guys come and talk about that – and even a guy who talks about max-load, and we wear a monitor. We have a lot of stuff going on, but at the end of the day, you’re a professional. You have to know what’s best for you on Sunday. Nobody can tell you more than you can tell yourself. Obviously, you guys know me, I’m a big advocate of all those things. I think those are untapped resources as a whole. We all go and lift the heaviest weight we can, and we run on Sundays, but are you going to bed on time so your body can recover? Are you putting the right things in your body? This is your vessel, so (it is about) making sure you put the right fuel (in) and don’t poison your body. Those (are) things that maybe guys don’t take advantage of, and we’re trying to make sure that we do that so we can gain those advantages on Sunday.”
(The whole thing about – it’s a bit of a cliché – but creating a winning culture. Do you look at that as a cliché or do you feel that that has happened here?) – “It’s to be seen. We got a lot of football left to play. I think, obviously, we have made steps in the right direction, obviously, with the way things have been going the last few weeks. I think guys will continue to get the confidence and notice that, ‘Listen, when I do X, this is what happens,’ or ‘This is what creates a win,’ or ‘This is what helps me feel better on Sunday, so that in the fourth quarter, I can go out and close out games.’ I think with that knowledge, hopefully the snowball gets going, and that’s where you get those things. But that’s probably a question you can ask me maybe at the end of the season. I look forward to this week, playing and putting another win in the column for the good guys.”
