Ndamukong Suh – June 14, 2017
Download PDF version
Wednesday, June 14, 2017
DT Ndamukong Suh
(Do you see improvement in the run defense out here and if so, how do you determine it when you don’t have pads on?) – “I think it’s tough to determine that when you don’t have pads on. I think the most important thing is guys are definitely in the right place where they need to be, but I think it’ll be very key for us to get a gauge of that when we get pads on and obviously when we get into preseason games.”
(What have you seen out of the rookie DE Charles Harris so far?) – “Charles, in my opinion, is a very focused kid. He’s very excited about his approach to the game. He’s very detail oriented. (He) obviously takes coaching very, very well (and) implements it very quickly as you coach him up in-game and (he) listens. Obviously he has been running with the ones and getting a lot of play time in our package we like to run in regards to pass rush. He has had a lot of good things from my opinion, but everybody has got a lot of work to do, so we’ve got a long way ahead of ourselves.”
(The last time you were here, you mentioned playing many more years. We asked Head Coach Adam Gase a little bit about longevity. Can you elaborate on that a little bit and have you really put much thought into how much longer you’re going to play?) – “I think at all times you look at it, and when you get to this age. I remember guys – Kyle Vanden Bosch, Corey Williams – being (in) their seventh and eighth year when I was a rookie going to Detroit. Seeing those guys and how they approached it, they really took it day by day and focused on what they needed to take care of in that particular moment and then worried about everything on (the) later back end. For me, personally, that’s kind of how my approach has been. Obviously, I want to continue to play at a very high level, so I’m in-tune with what I need to get done right now, and then let the years to come worry about themselves.”
(How much of an example does DE Cameron Wake set at 35?) – “It’s exciting to see a guy like that, 1) have the year he had last year, but see how he’s coming out and being just as good, if not better, in a lot of ways. I think this will be a very fun and exciting year for him. Obviously, he’s not having to worry about injury or anything of that sort, having a good offseason from the looks of it. Obviously, being with him the last four weeks, he’s in great shape.”
(What’s one thing you’ve taken or learned from DE Cameron Wake since you’ve been together?) – “Just pass rush. I think one of the things of being able to work with a guy like that, the way he rushes … I love the way he rushes. It’s actually funny, (we) were talking about that today with (Defensive Line) Coach ‘T’ (Terrell Williams). A lot of people think he’s a speed rusher, but a lot of times he uses his speed, but it turns into power. (He’s) really a straight line guy. I can learn certain techniques – hands and different stuff like that – from him. And he’s obviously seen a lot. I play outside a little bit. So, there are things for me to learn from him, without question.”
(When you think about this phase of your career that you’re in now and possibly how much longer you want to play, how much do you think about or factor in the physical beating that you take at your positon?) – “I think I’m built for it, first and foremost; but I think at the end of the day, it’s about coaches and how they take care of us. ‘T’ (Defensive Line Coach Terrell Williams) does a great job – (Head Coach Adam) Gase does a great job – allowing us to get good, quality reps where we’re 1) getting the work that we need to get in, but we’re not beating ourselves up, especially in these particular instances. Obviously, in camp is a great gauge of that as well. For me, I’m not really worried about it. I’ve always prided myself on playing as many plays as I can possible. I just love being on the football field.”
(What do you want your legacy to be when they write the book on Ndamukong Suh?) – “I’m not sure. In what regards are you speaking of?”
(Where you stand among the greats of all-time, things like that.) – “I think I’ve always prided myself on wanting to be a guy that has been very similar to, obviously, the greats – Reggie White, Warren Sapp – guys of that caliber (that) change the game from their particular position. I’m only eight years into the league. They played many, many more years than me. I still have a lot of work ahead of myself. I think in this particular instance, probably one of the best things I would want people to recognize for me is you have to know where I am at on the football field at all times. If you don’t, then I should be causing havoc. And even if you do, I still want to cause havoc.”
(Do you ever think about the Hall of Fame?) – “I’d be lying to you if I said I didn’t. Of course. Everybody thinks about the Hall of Fame. One of the first trips I took, I remember going to the Hall of Fame in Canton. I’ve been there a couple times. Obviously (you) see teammates there for breaking particular records – Calvin (Johnson), Matt Stafford – other guys like that. I’d love to be a part of it. Charlie (Sanders) – one of the best receivers in Detroit Lions history – to be there with him and see his bust, and obviously he unfortunately passed recently, it was special to me. I was really close to him. But of course you think about the Hall of Fame; but like I said, I’m very young. I think at this stage, I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me.”
(When it comes to players and taking care of their bodies in the offseason – we know you’re meticulous about that – has the level of knowledge and participation increased since you’ve been in the league or is it about the same as far as workout regimen and knowing what to put in your body?) – “Without question it has increased. There are many people that I’ve come across in the last five or six years that I’ve been fortunate to listen to, learn from, understand my body. Something is always changing, so it’s an evolution to find different ways to adapt the body. That’s the great thing about the body – it adapts as you challenge it. You have to find new ways to stay healthy and new modalities to keep you sharp.”
(When did you start paying attention to that? In the pros? In college?) – “I think it first started in college, especially after my freshman year; but it was very, very low level. I think it got to a heightened sense, especially after I had surgery my rookie season on my shoulder (and) finding new ways to 1) lift weights and be very, very strong. Everybody has a concept of tearing your body down and building it back up. You don’t have to necessarily do that in my opinion to stay strong and be very, very strong throughout the season. I think there are a lot of things that I’ve learned from after that surgery and the people that I work with now to where I look to be in the future and being able to play for a long time.”
(What does your offseason entail now that you leave here after minicamp? What do you do to get prepared for training camp?) – “Five strenuous weeks. I go back to Portland with my trainer, usually check in with my docs on certain things. If I have any bumps or bruises or whatever from minicamp – or mishaps – I deal with those particular issues. There are some other things that go in there but I’m not going to disclose those.”
(I think you were in the room when Head Coach Adam Gase said in so many words, ‘I made a mistake. I screwed up,’ relative to not playing DE Cameron Wake more. I was wondering hearing that from a coach, what goes through your mind?) – “I vaguely heard it. But if those were his words … I think at the end of the day, what they wanted to do was ease Cam back into his progression and playing at a high level. At the end of the day, I think they did a great job with handling that. I think it’s proven in the pudding of what Cam produced. Obviously, they could’ve done it earlier and it could’ve been probably better, but that’s in the past. I think the future is where we’re at right now.”
(I guess I meant from a bigger picture perspective. It seems like Head Coach Adam Gase is one of those guys that has accountability for himself and his colleagues.) – “No question. I think Coach (Gase) is very accountability oriented 1) For his players (and) 2) For himself, and everybody in this particular organization. And that’s something that’s great, because he doesn’t put himself on a pedestal to say, ‘Everything I say is perfect.’ We’ve had some great conversations, especially this offseason even when I wasn’t here, about things of that nature and how we can get better as a particular team. He’s a great head coach and I think he’s only going to continue to get better because he has that mentality.”
(You were joking a couple weeks about turning 30. Do you feel kind of old when you’re around these rookies that are 22 in your corner in the locker room?) – “Without question. Some of the music that they listen to is not necessarily (to) my liking, but I like being around the young guys. At the end of the day, they’re coming in here to help and play at a high level. I’ve spent some time while I’ve been here with them outside of the building. It’s good to be around young guys that have a different perspective. It allows me to think about things a little bit differently. I think even in practice, it allows me to get back to my basics. I don’t know if you guys have noticed, (but) we go off the field as defensive linemen and offensive linemen a little bit earlier, but we have that time to 1) Interact with the younger guys as they get work in and we can do extra work. So, those times are good for us to 1) Get back to the basics that we may not be thinking about when we’re in the heat of the battle and doing situational football and things of that nature.”
(Are you motivated at all by that on the practice field? The challenge of trying to match someone that’s eight years younger than you. I know that you can, but…) – “A match as in intensity or what exactly?”
(Enthusiasm, the effort. Someone that’s eight years younger than you…) – “I think I’ve always been an even-keeled guy, so I don’t necessarily look at it like that. But from the standpoint of energy and things of that nature, I think it’s good to have them around. At the same time, I think it goes back to the younger ways of getting back to the basics and then obviously being able to have the advanced knowledge of looking for certain keys and stuff like that, and just re-learning stuff yourself that you may not have been thinking about and that you know already, but it gets your brain thinking about it again, because the younger guy may not.”
(You mentioned what you’ll do after minicamp for five strenuous weeks. Do you allow yourself anytime to get away from football a little bit?) – “There’s time. I think you can have some time during the weekends. I think probably the most time would be once we finish up on Thursday, tomorrow. We’ve got Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Monday is a big day. (I’ll) start those five weeks and kind of go from there.”
(Frightened or fascinated by that swarm of bees out there?) – “I’m not a fan of bees. I’ve been around yellow jackets in Jamaica and all that stuff. I’m not too scared of them, but I’d rather not be stung if I didn’t have to be.”
