"Bambi, that last pass, wow, 27 yards, the arc was absolutely beautiful!"
"That run, 17 yards, Bambi, tonight definitely belongs to you! God, how did you do it?"
"The Catch, The Catch. Haha, I'm afraid the Cowboys are going to have a psychological trauma. Way to go, Bambi!"
Shouts, exclamations, and congratulations were endless.
More than half of the players in the locker room came up to chat with Lu Ke, who was like the center of attention. Victory can cover up all conflicts, while failure can expose all problems. Until the end of today, the San Francisco 49ers could fully enjoy the joy of this victory.
As for the starting quarterback competition between Lu Ke and Alex Smith, that was a matter for tomorrow.
Gradually, the celebrations and parties in the locker room slowly calmed down. After all, this was just a regular-season game, not the Super Bowl. The players slowly returned to their usual routines of getting massages, taking showers, and getting their injuries checked. However, joy and excitement were still evident, and the atmosphere in the locker room was pleasant.
At this moment, Lu Ke was also in an ice bath, relaxing his muscles.
An ice bath is essentially sitting in cold water mixed with ice cubes, with the temperature controlled between 12 and 14 degrees Celsius. On the one hand, it lowers the body temperature after intense exercise and relieves central nervous system fatigue. On the other hand, it increases blood flow through the cardiovascular system, reduces vascular pressure, and thus eliminates metabolic products in the muscles, preventing potential injuries.
After intense sports and training, using an ice bath to regulate the body is a very effective way of rehabilitation. Generally, after a game, players need to soak in an ice bath for about 20 minutes. Lu Ke was doing his ice bath right now.
Actually, in today's game, thanks to the Dallas Cowboys' tactical arrangements, they mostly played pass defense, and there weren't many blitzes. The physical contact with Lu Ke wasn't frequent, and there was only one sack in the entire game. The physical confrontation was not on the same level as the first game.
Plus, with the strength training he had last week, his ability to withstand hits seemed to have increased a bit. In comparison to physical fatigue, there was more mental fatigue from the thinking he had to do, which led to muscle tension. To relax his body, Lu Ke still opted for the ice bath.
Sitting in the tub, Lu Ke was a very conspicuous target, and players who came and went all came over to high-five him. However, this did not include Vernon Davis or Parys Haralson.
The constant chatter and congratulations lasted for almost 10 minutes. When it finally calmed down, Lu Ke finally had time to settle down and summon the system in his mind to check his rewards.
A "ding-ding-ding" sound poured down like a beautiful wind chime, playing a cheerful melody. Then Lu Ke couldn't wait to read the unread messages.
"Congratulations on completing the game mission..."
"Congratulations on completing the game mission..."
"Congratulations on completing the game mission..."
The same phrase appeared three times. Of these, he earned three basic points for the three touchdowns, one basic point for the passing yards, and three basic points for winning the game.
After calculating everything, he earned a total of seven basic points in the second week of the regular season. After last week's huge haul of 15 basic points, this week's harvest seemed a bit modest. But this was the regular season. The regular season happens every week, and with 16 games in total, the accumulation of basic points would be substantial.
One prerequisite was that the game missions could be completed every week.
As the season progressed, winning would become more and more difficult. In the past 10 years, there has only been one team that had an undefeated season. In the 2007 season, the New England Patriots had a perfect 16-0 record, but unfortunately, they lost in the Super Bowl to the New York Giants, led by Eli Manning, and failed to achieve a perfect season.
Even in the entire history of the league, after the season was officially expanded to 16 games, there were only two teams that had an undefeated record.
This shows that victory, even with your best efforts, is not a guarantee. The charm of football lies in the teamwork, which is demonstrated to the fullest. Although the quarterback's importance is irreplaceable, he is still just one part of the whole game.
Another prerequisite was that Lu Ke could win the starting competition.
Not just against Alex Smith next week, or Colin Kaepernick the week after, the starting competition would be the main theme of every game in his rookie season. This is because every rookie must prove themselves and earn trust through one game after another.
Putting his thoughts aside for a moment, the season had just begun with two games, and "the future" was still too far away. He had to focus on the present, move forward steadily, one step at a time, one game at a time. Then, everything would fall into place.
Just as Lu Ke was thinking about how to allocate his basic points, he noticed another unread message: "Congratulations on completing the special mission: Game Progressive."
At first, Lu Ke didn't react and was stunned for a moment before he remembered. After the halftime break, before the first snap of the second half, the system proposed a new special mission. The situation was urgent at the time, and he didn't have time to read it in detail before fully dedicating himself to the game.
He didn't rush to read the mission rewards. Instead, he opened the special mission first and read it carefully.
"Special Mission: Game Progressive.
Mission Description: In the Week 2 regular-season game against the Dallas Cowboys, make self-adjustments in the second half, learn from the mistakes and experiences of the first half, and make targeted tactical adjustments and reorganizations. Learn to read the flow of the game, control the pace of the game, and adapt to the situation, gradually maturing as a player.
Mission Requirements: Increase passing completion rate to 65% and control passing accuracy to have one or fewer interceptions.
Mission Rewards: Special Points +2.
Failure Punishment: Strength training duration is doubled, training volume on rest days is doubled, and facial blushing during media interviews lasts for 30 minutes."
Even though he was mentally prepared and was slowly getting used to it, Lu Ke still rolled his eyes when he saw the failure punishment. He almost cursed out loud. The first two were fine, but what the heck was the third one? Accepting interviews while being incredibly shy? He would rather miss the interview and be fined by the league.
The league's official rules state that on media interview days, every player must be present, and their stay must be longer than 15 minutes. Otherwise, the league will fine them. If a player is a repeat offender, the league will also issue a warning.
He took a deep breath, and then another. Sitting in the tub and enjoying the ice bath, Lu Ke calmed down again. He ignored the failure punishment and focused on the mission description, pondering it over and over.
Essentially, the Football Superstar System is a support system. It provides help, guidance, and direction to help the player become a superstar through their own hard work. Today's special mission further proved this point.
The reason why competitive sports are so exciting and breathtaking is that the field is full of unpredictability and constant changes. Every game is different, and the field is always full of unknown surprises and variables. This is especially true for team sports, and football is no exception.
As the commander on the field, a quarterback's job is not just to pass and run the offense. He also needs to control the pace and flow of the entire game, and he needs to read the difficulties and problems of the game and make adjustments in real-time. The reason why elite quarterbacks are called "elite," and there are only four of them in the entire league, is because their reading, interpretation, and understanding of the game are superior.
Football is a very intense contact sport, but relatively speaking, the quarterback is the "safest" position.
First, the quarterback has pocket protection from the offensive line, which forms a barrier. Second, according to the play call, the quarterback can stay away from the defensive line's blitz to protect himself. Finally, after the quarterback completes a pass, the league rules give the quarterback the most complete protection, and any contact with the player is absolutely illegal.
Instead, the quarterback has to do a large amount of data processing in terms of play-calling, strategy, and on-field judgment. Simply put, while physical abilities are important, for a quarterback, the brain and a good feel for the game are more important.
During the rookie scouting combine, everyone has to complete the Wonderlic Test, but it is the quarterbacks' scores that teams really pay attention to for this very reason.
In recent years, physically strong running quarterbacks have become famous, but they have never become the mainstream in the league for this very reason.
In today's game, the Cowboys' defensive strategy in the first half completely limited Lu Ke's performance. No matter how the coaching staff changed or arranged the plays, Lu Ke was always held back and couldn't create any opportunities. This was not only a lack of game experience and a lack of countermeasures, but also a lack of game awareness. He was completely blind to what was happening in the game.
He couldn't see the true face of the mountain because he was in it.
So, the system arranged a special mission to urge Lu Ke to look at the game from a higher perspective, to read the game again, to get rid of all distractions, and to focus on his choice of passing targets, his decision on passing routes, and his reading of the defense. With a little bit of a reminder, a little bit of guidance, and a little bit of encouragement, the system was trying to get Lu Ke back on the right track.
If he failed, the mission punishment was not lethal. But if he succeeded, he was rewarded with two special points. This was another one of the system's thoughtful touches.
Looking back at the game now, if Lu Ke had not been able to clear his head during halftime, then no matter how the coaching staff changed the tactics, Lu Ke would not have been able to carry them out and would not have been able to escape his confusion, and the result of the game would still have been a loss.
This was the purpose of the special mission.
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