SANTA CLARA – Here’s what the starting right guard, Adam Snyder, said today at his locker.
Q: Who do you think is the best guy you’ve faced this year?
SNYDER: (Tampa Bay’s Gerald) McCoy was good. He’s quick. He’s a lot like the kid I’m going to play this week. They’re both real quick big guys. Active with their hands. Probably him. Unfortunately he got hurt. Hope he gets better. Cullen Jenkins was a challenge. He’s been a good player for a long time, won a Super Bowl.
Q: That quickness was just so evident in that game the other night. What can you do to combat that?
SNYDER: Without getting into too much, I have some things in my set I can bring. I don’t want to give it to you and give it away.
Q: Are you glad you lost all that weight?
SNYDER: Not really. It’s about technique. The weight thing is more about how I feel physically. I feel better. My knees don’t hurt and my back, all that stuff. Am I a little quicker now that I lost a little weight? Probably. I’m moving a little bit better. Definitely feel better.
Q: You and Joe get way down field on running plays. Is that related to the loss of weight?
SNYDER: No, that’s more of an attitude thing that Joe brought to us and say, “Hey, let’s do a better job of finishing.” That’s something we need to do more of, and I think it showed up a little bit last week. We’ll continue to do that. We’ve got 11 games to go. We’ll get better and better. It’s more about protecting our guys down the field in case a fumble happens or something we’re around the ball and we’re there to help out if something happens.
Q: What did you top out as weight-wise and where are you now?
SNYDER: I was, like, 330, probably.
Q: When was that?
SNYDER: Two years ago.
Q: What are you now?
SNYDER: 295.
Q: How’d you lose the weight?
SNYDER: I don’t know. A little bit my diet. More we worked out pretty hard in the offseason. Did a lot of cardio. More about my diet, probably, is the biggest.
Q: What did you weigh last year?
SNYDER: 315, 320 range last season.
Q: Do you think the coaches have tailored the running plays to your mobility?
SNYDER: I’m not sure what their plan is with that. I’m not sure what it is that makes them think I can do it. I think they did some of that at Stanford. It just worked out that we have guys on our team that can do it.
Q: Would you agree the play calling the last couple weeks has been very good and it takes advantage of what you guys do well?
SNYDER: Our coaches are very, very smart football coaches. It’s more about us understanding the scheme. They’ve done an excellent job with us as far as giving us the little details of each of the offensive plays that we’ve put in so far. It’s about the coaching. It really helped us out. Obviously I think they’re tailoring it to what we have as far as depth and what we have as an offense.
Q: Was there a point when you thought you wouldn’t be as powerful if you dropped weight?
SNYDER: No, because I never lost any strength. If anything, I got stronger in the offseason. Really, the weight didn’t really matter. I feel better which is the biggest thing. Probably more healthy. Don’t have to carry around that extra weight.
Q: Is it vindicating at all to you to know the offensive line has performed well with you in the starting lineup?
SNYDER: No, not at all. It’s more about us understanding the scheme better. We’re two weeks more into the offensive system. Guys are getting a better understanding of where we’re at as far as the game planning.
Q: Delanie says the coaching staff has more confidence in this team? Have you seen that?
SNYDER: Yeah, I think it’s more they coach us with a ton of detail and they give us a ton of information. We’re very focused and detailed in that aspect, but at the same time it’s very loose. They allow us to play football. Sometimes it’s a feel. If you don’t feel right doing something you can try something different. It’s not going to be a big issue. They work with you as far as technique and stuff like that. So more it’s an attitude they bring about giving us the most amount detail we can have and also keeping it loose. Not having guys play tight.
Q: Do you feel you’re armed with more weapons?
SNYDER: Yeah. The things that they brought here are excellent. And that starts with the attitude and it goes all the way down into the playbook. We’re just now starting to experience what they can fully offer, and it’s only going to get better.
Q: What do you mean by when you say they help you play loose?
SNYDER: When you play tight you tend to screw more things up. You’re about what the coach is going to say. Now, you screw it up, you learn from it and you move on. They don’t dwell on it. They don’t make a big deal about it. You screw up, you figure out what you did wrong and you fix it and you go on to the next thing. That’s probably why there’s a buzz in this locker room. Guys are excited about what they bring. Guys are excited about our staff and they’re excited about our players. It’s nice. It’s a good feeling.
Q: Can you explain Frank Gore’s football IQ?
SNYDER: He understands angles very well, and he understands schemes and where there’s going to be holes as far as the front. He understands how to run – low pad level. He’s one of the best backs in the league, if not the best. I’ve had the opportunity to play with him for seven years and it’s been really fun and exciting. Watching him grow as a running back, it’s just been really fun. He’s always been a really great guy, too, outside of football, which is awesome.
Q: How’d you get that cut on your nose?
SNYDER: My helmet came down against Cincinnati. It happened a couple years ago. It just keeps reopening. I’ll never be able to get rid of it. It will scar up and probably happen again.
Comments are closed.