Per NFL rules, 49ers first-round draft pick Solomon Thomas has not been able to join the team during OTAs, until he completes his final semester at Stanford. Instead of kicking back, however, Thomas is making the most of his time away from the team, by training with future Hall-of-Fame defensive end DeMarcus Ware.
According to an interview Ware gave on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football, Thomas reached out to the nine-time Pro Bowler to ask if he’d be willing to work with him before training camp. What’s more, Thomas is now planning on wearing No. 94 this season as a tribute to Wear, who he now plans to work with for the entire offseason.
“When you get a rookie who’s mature enough to call a veteran and ask for help before training camp, that is big,” Ware said. “I told him, ‘I don’t want you to be like me, I want you to be better than me, I’m going to show you some things that can take you to the next level.’ I’m going to work with him this whole offseason. In July, when everyone is off, he’s right there in Texas so I’ll be working with him.”
“He has that dog in him,” Ware said. “He’s a strong boy. He’s fast.”
Ware announced his retirement in March of this year, after playing for 12 seasons. Ware will go down as one of the greatest pass rushers in NFL history, with his 138 and 1/2 sacks ranking eighth all time.
Here’s a video of Ware and Thomas training together via Ware’s Twitter account.
Perfection doesn't come in a day.
Practice your craft until it becomes natural.. that's when u will see improvement. #sackmaster94 pic.twitter.com/bgcEJFUUqO— D-Ware (@DeMarcusWare) May 23, 2017