Torrey Smith talks the season, Anquan Boldin, and the state of the 49ers

Note: (Opening question was cut off in interview)

Probably when Anquan was getting his thousandth catch. That was cool. Seen a lot of those, so that's pretty cool. To me that's history.

Did you guys say anything in the huddle?

You try to focus on the game, but gave him a hug, congrats and try to win the game. But it's pretty cool to see. That's a lot. That's pretty cool.

Do you know how many you're going to catch in your career?

Who knows? I don't know.

He said a thousand wasn't ever on his mind.

He just plays, we play different too. You know [I'm] in the slot more,  so he's going to get a lot of volume. I think you need to catch all the ones coming your way, that's the goal. And then see what happens at the end when it's all done. Everyone knows I think Anquan is a hall of famer. Maybe he has something bigger coming with the man of the year, which is probably bigger than football. So I hope he wins that too if not we're gonna riot out here.

The sample size is small, but have you seen growth from Blaine [49ers Quarterback Blaine Gabbert] from when he took over to the end of the season?

I think so. I think with any game there's going to be ups and downs. I think Blaine has done a great job and has been strong point for us. We've scored some points since he's been in there. Had a lot of direction in there, he's a great leader, guys love him. I think he's doing a great job with his opportunity and making the best of it.

He has not made a lot of mistakes. Would you like to see him be a bit more aggressive with the ball?

I think there's a time and place for everything. I'm the kind of guy that when I play Madden, I'm always am very aggressive, but there's no punishment for that. When you're a quarterback it's a lot different. We take our shots when we can but I think we can make some more plays. That's not just on him, that's on all of us.

Is that a question of, well we've asked a lot this year about throwing it short of the sticks on 3^rd down. Is that something that might come as he gets more comfortable in the offense?  Is it a function of some of the personnel?

I think it's a little bit of everything. Sometimes we're in 3^rd and long so it's going to be hard for him to get aggressive and he has to take what they give him. I think he's taken some shots. Obviously, in any case, we could always be a little bit more aggressive and he can do that. That's the most important thing. It's not a matter of if he can do it, it's if he does do it. He can do it, he has the abilities, you just gotta roll with the punch and try to make the most of everything.

Is that a function of the comfort level of the receivers and he obviously he hasn't been throwing to you and Anquan for very long?

I don't know what it could be there's so many different things that go into it. I'd say the biggest thing is kind of what the defense gives you. So I don't know what else to say.

How would you rate your season?

Terrible. I have high expectations for myself and I didn't reach any of my goals so it's a horrible season. Very fun. Being with the guys in the locker room, I enjoyed my time here, but as far as an individual, I have very high expectations for myself and I look at my numbers alone and see it's not where it should be. I obviously didn't get the ball a ton either. But I have very high goals for myself and I didn't make the most of every opportunity, so it kinda is what it is.

As a wide receiver, you're depended on others to have some success. You're saying individually outside of what was happening around you, you didn't feel like you played as well as you could

Definitely. Because at the end of the day all I can focus on is what I can control. It's plays I didn't make and put a few on the ground. I don't know, I think right now I don't know where I am statistically, but I know it's not where I want to be. There's a lot of different factors that go into that, but it all starts with me. I look at myself in the mirror and say, "Did I make the most out of every opportunity?" and the answer to that is no. Gotta come back better, finish strong this year, try to be better next year. But I can't really worry everything else.  I can only control what happens when the ball does come my way. And out of as many targets as I had, I didn't make every single play. So it wasn't a good year for me.

Can you build momentum off this one game in Week 17?

I've been playing for years so I know what it takes to be successful. I'm not really trying to build momentum, or anything, but I do want to finish strong. That means us winning. It's not about me individually, but I'll be ready, come next offseason. Thought I was ready this year too. I felt like I was very well prepared, but I didn't meet my own expectations and obviously our team didn't reach our own goals and expectations which is the number one goal of everyone around here.

But as a team, can you imagine yourself  being back in a training camp? And saying, "Well we won in Week 17, I feel so much better?"

Absolutely not. It sucks, man. To know you're not going to the playoffs. At the end of the day, that's why you work the way you do in the offseason, to get into the playoffs and win the Super Bowl. Not just get into the playoffs but advance you got your little ticket, but it doesn't matter if you don't win at the end of the night.  For us, that's what it's all about, just winning the Super Bowl. There are no moral victories not like these college games, where you have a bowl game championship that means anything. We're all playing for one team, every team in the league, and there's only going to be one winner. So if you ask me every year, there's 31 losers, and it's a big waste of a year if you don't win it all personally.

Years you didn't play in the Super Bowl—

It was a big waste of a year

Were you at the Super Bowl, or did you want to be around it?

You know what? The way it happened, I lucked up and was able to win it my second year, but my first year I couldn't go. I felt like we should have been there, I was a little salty. I didn't watch the game, I didn't want anything to do with it. But, the older you get the more you realize, I played with guys who never made the playoffs their entire careers. So it makes you cherish those moments. Now that I've been to the top you want to get back there. And you know what it takes to be there. The bad thing about it is you're missing this year, but the good thing is you know you have guys that can make it happen. So that's really all you can focus on is finish strong and see what happens next year.