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Cameron Wake – October 25, 2018 (Postgame)

Thursday, October 25, 2018
 Postgame – Houston Texans

Miami Dolphins DE Cameron Wake (Transcribed by Houston Texans)

What were some of the issues that you guys were having defensively that caused the big leakage of yardage?
“I’ll give you a pro tip. There is no defense from kiddie football, high school, college where players are uncovered. There is no defense where gaps aren’t filled. So any time you see that, like tonight, where there’s a guy running through the gap untouched or a receiver running free, there’s an error being made somewhere. Whether it’s miscommunication or a bad read, whatever, obviously there’s a few. That would be a very general statement to answer your question.”

So you think it’s more guys aren’t doing their job as opposed to scheming?
“There’s no scheme that, again, allows for free runners anywhere on the field. So I mean, you go back and look at kiddie football, there’s gap integrity, there’s players that are accounted for, whether it’s man or zone, that’s just how defense works as a whole. So, regardless of what didn’t happen, someone somewhere made an error to have that happen.”

Did you guys have enough time to fix what went wrong against the Detroit Lions with the quick turnaround to this game?
“No, they didn’t have any more time than we had. Playing field is equal, you got to go out there and do your job.”

What in your mind, other than people doing their assignments, can fix the leakage that you guys have been enduring during the last three weeks?
“There is nothing else. There is no magic pill. There is no secret. It’s defense. Each player has a gap or a man or a zone or whatever it is and that’s why this game is so great, because at some point the ball is going to get there, to the person, to the man, to the gap and someone’s accountable for that. We all can see it; it’s on the big screen, bright lights and all that. Did it come in my gap? Did I not do what I was supposed to do? Did it go in your gap? Did you not do what you were supposed to do? And so on and so on down the line. Every man, for 60 minutes, four quarters, 80 plays, whatever it takes, has to be there. Because as you see you can do it for 42 plays and then that one play, play 43, you’re not there, and again, in this league they’ll find that hole; they’ll find that guy who’s not doing their thing that they’re supposed to be doing and 80 yards later you have a yard leakage.”

What are your thoughts on the work that Defensive Coordinator Matt Burke is doing with the defense?
“He’s good. You could close your eyes and call it a defense you don’t even have to know all of the details. Now, are there certain defenses that are better suited for certain plays, yes, but I guarantee you there’s a solution to every offensive play that has ever been run in the history of football. I always look at myself in the mirror first and say, ‘Listen, if the ball was run in my gap I did something wrong.’ And every player has to go through every single play, run or pass, and say, did so-and-so catch the ball, why did that happen? Did so-and-so run in B gap, who was supposed to be there? It’s a very simple thing to answer that question. Now why you didn’t do the things you were supposed to do, now that is a little more complex.”

With this team playing the way that it’s played the last two weeks, does it chip away a little at the confidence?
“I would hope not. It’s always, you know a quote I used to hear quite a bit coming up, ‘You’re never as good as you think you are when you win, you’re never as bad as you think you are when you lose.’ You can’t exaggerate on either side of the ball. You know, we didn’t get this one, but at the same time, four weeks ago everybody was flowers and cotton candy and puppies and all that. It’s not a situation where the sky is falling, but I think again, you got to look at yourself in the mirror, each man from top to bottom. I don’t care if it’s the head coach to the last guy on the roster. What is your role and are you fulfilling that role. Whether it’s on the playing field, off the playing field, coaches, whatever, everybody’s involved. And again, I think that’s why this game is the greatest game. Because it’s very easy to diagnose the problem – you weren’t in your gap. Now why you weren’t in that gap, or why you didn’t cover that man, or what did you see, or all of those other complexities. Now that takes a little more involvement.”

There are moments where guys are not covered, they just run through.
“That’s what I’m saying, there’s no defense where that exists. There’s no offensive play where a running back can run through untouched, it doesn’t exist. In fact if that could happen, the whole offense would have been running it for the last 100 years of football. Same thing with passing, there’s no play where receivers are just free. There’s nothing. Quarterbacks, all people are accounted for at all times. Again, diagnosing it – very simple. It’s what was the defense, who had the ball, and who was supposed to not let him run that ball that place. It’s very easy. Why? That’s a whole other issue.”

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