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Cameron Wake – October 13, 2016 Download PDF version

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Defensive End Cameron Wake

(On what makes Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger so good and if it is because he is big and hard to bring down) – “I don’t know if I’d go all the way there, but he’s a good football player. It’s always the goal as a defensive player, a defensive end, to get after the quarterback, make him uncomfortable and hit him. I’m sure no quarterback enjoys that, so any time you have a good football player, that’s what you have to do.”

(On why Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger is so difficult to bring down) – “Again, I don’t know if I’ve personally experienced that. I’m a big guy, too. I do my best.”

(On Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger having him beat by a few pounds) – “I don’t know if quarterbacks are built the same way defensive ends are built. I’ve had quarterbacks that are hard to get. Once you get in the backfield, the job is to get the quarterback on the ground, whether they’re big and strong or they’re small and they run fast or if they spin and throw the ball before you get there. There are a lot of issues once you … The first job is beating the tackle – or whoever the protection is – and getting back there. That’s the hardest part to me. Usually, the second part is a little easier.”

(On what is the issue with edge setting and what the team needs to do to get better against the run) – “I don’t think it’s any one particular thing, I think it’s just consistency. I feel like we’ve had spurts, where we show … whether setting the edge, clogging the middle, playing pass; whatever the situation is, we’ve done that. Now doing it for 80 plays versus 73, that’s the issue. Those other seven plays that you don’t do it are the plays where you get big plays. You get explosive plays, you get long passes or long runs and that obviously screws everything up. Even – not to go back to old stuff – (but) in the past, one play here or one person here not being in their gap and not being where they are supposed to be kind of ruins the rest of the plays you did well and the rest of the guys who are doing it well.”

(On Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, RB Le’Veon Bell and WR Antonio Brown and if this team is capable of as many explosive plays as any team in the league) – “Have you been around the last 5 weeks? (Laughter) We’ve played some teams that have some explosive players and news flash, we’re going to play some more coming up in the next few weeks. It’s not anything new to me. It’s life in the NFL as a player. You’re going to have the best players in the world doing what they do. You – whether it’s running back one week or a quarterback the next week or a receiver the next week – have to do whatever you can to contain those guys. Also another news flash, we have some pretty good players here on our defense that are tasked with that and I think it will be a good game.”

(On if it is tougher to tackle a big guy like Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger or an elusive guy like Seahawks QB Russell Wilson) – “The hardest thing is beating a big, fat, ugly o-lineman that is trying to keep you from getting to the Ben or the Russell. That’s the hard part. Once you get back there, they’re defenseless, so you’ve just got to do whatever you can to get the ball on the ground.”

(On not being on a winning team since he joined the organization in 2009 and how much of a toll it takes on him) – “It’s frustrating; but the great thing about football is that you have to have a short memory. You can’t think about even the last play, let alone five years ago. When I get on the field, I don’t think about that. I don’t think about the last play. I think about the situation right now, whoever’s in front of me, whatever my job is and getting that done. The reality is, to be a good pass rusher and to be a good football player, if you’re concerned about how great you did last week, last play, two years ago or how terrible you did, in that same time frame, it’s going to affect your output coming up. I kind of erase my memory, go forward and kick butt.”

(On if it is more important for him to spend his entire career in Miami or being with a winner) – “It’s not which one is more important. I just want to win. Obviously, I’m here in Miami and I’ll be here as long as they’ll have me. I’m doing everything I can to make sure Miami’s a winner. I’m not concerned with going anywhere else or doing anything else. Like I said, as long as they’ll have me, I’ll be here, and as long as I’m able, I’ll do whatever I can to make this a winning team.”

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