Faced with the San Francisco 49ers' bold and crazy shotgun formation, the Arizona Cardinals' defense was in a difficult situation. The defense is always the reactive side in a confrontation, and now the 49ers' full-fire formation had them completely tied up. So, should they stick to their plan or be proactive?
Patrick Peterson turned to look at the defensive team captain, defensive end Calais Campbell, and he noticed that their defensive formation had changed slightly. A safety had moved up, creating a heavy defense in the short-pass area to increase their defense against short passes and running plays. What did this mean?
The Cardinals' defensive formation could be divided into two parts: the short-pass area with ten players, and the second part with a safety positioned twelve yards back. The lone safety in the back, Adrian Wilson, had a clear job: to be the last line of defense against a potential deep pass. The second part was simple; the first part was where the defensive changes were.
The ten players in the first part included four defensive linemen, three linebackers, two cornerbacks, and one advanced safety. The four defensive linemen still had the important task of rushing the offensive line and blitzing the quarterback. The Cardinals refused to back down and stuck to their blitzing strategy, consistently putting enough pressure on the quarterback. This gave them more space and time in the passing game and showcased their aggressive defense.
The other six players were all in passing defense positions. On the Cardinals' left side (corresponding to the 49ers' right), there were four players. On the Cardinals' right side, there were two players. Thanks to the help of an advanced safety, the three linebackers didn't need to retreat and could remain aggressive. If they had a chance, they would blitz and join the defensive linemen to sack the quarterback. If not, they would join the cornerbacks and safety to defend against short and medium passes and wait for a potential running play.
Simply put, they had taken precautions against Lu Ke's fast snaps and quick releases while maintaining their aggressiveness. The cost was sacrificing the deep defense, hoping that the quarterback blitz in the front would not give Lu Ke a chance to breathe and throw a deep pass. It was a very aggressive and proactive defensive formation.
Third and 16. The San Francisco 49ers had to advance 16 yards to get another first down. This put the 49ers in a difficult position, but it also gave the Cardinals the capital to be more aggressive.
On the defensive line, on the Cardinals' left side, Peterson's defensive target had switched. Logan had moved to the outside, creating a one-on-one matchup with Peterson. The inside tight end, Vernon, was being covered by outside linebacker O'Brien Schofield. Additionally, the advanced safety, Sean Considine, was about three yards behind, ready to assist in defending Logan and Vernon. Besides them, there was Marcus, who couldn't be forgotten. Middle linebacker Reggie Walker would be responsible for him. Then, defensive end Nick Eason, who came in for the injured Dockett, would decide whether to continue the blitz or defend Marcus after the snap. But his main task was clearly to blitz the quarterback.
On this side, three receiving players were matched up with four defensive players: two linebackers, one cornerback, and one safety. On the other side, things were relatively lighter. Crabtree and Ginn were only matched up with two defensive players: one cornerback and one linebacker. Overall, Crabtree had a clear advantage over his defender, cornerback Richard Marshall. Therefore, the deep safety, Adrian Wilson, had also shifted slightly to that side. If Lu Ke were to throw to Crabtree, he would have to come up and assist to prevent Crabtree from getting a huge gain.
Standing in the pocket, Lu Ke had a clear view of all the players who were crouched down. After checking all the matchups in the short-pass area and confirming they were correct, he slowly crouched down and extended his hands. In the tense and almost suffocating air, he deliberately glanced at Peterson from the corner of his eye and then loudly yelled, "Hut!"
In an instant, all the players scattered. After grabbing the football, Lu Ke methodically took quick steps back in the shotgun formation, further creating space for a pass. The entire field unfolded before him like a blueprint.
On the right side, Marcus, who was in the slot, successfully tore open a gap and appeared in the middle-right area. It was a five-yard short pass. Without any hesitation, Lu Ke raised his arm to throw. But before he could complete the motion, he saw the middle linebacker Walker and the safety Considine behind him quickly coming to double-team Marcus. The passing window vanished in an instant.
What was worse, the defensive ends Eason and Campbell on this side had intentionally let Marcus go and were now fully focused on breaking through the offensive line's pocket. Anthony Davis and Joe Staley were struggling to hold them off, but they were still being pushed back, and the pocket was about to collapse.
Immediately, Lu Ke quickly moved horizontally to the left. He lowered his arm, shifted his vision to the left, and saw Crabtree's open space. His defender, Marshall, couldn't hold his position at all. Crabtree had used his body to create a small passing window. For Lu Ke, this window was enough. He only needed a pass behind the shoulder to get the ball to Crabtree.
He raised his arm, drew his bow, and swung his arm. Lu Ke's entire body and feet began to move. But then a wall appeared in his line of sight. The backup offensive tackle, Adam Schneider, who was in for Chilo Rachal, was a mess and could barely hold on. This not only blocked Lu Ke's passing lane but also crashed into him. He didn't see it coming from his blindside. Lu Ke was half a beat too slow. His knees buckled, and he stumbled back two steps, losing the passing lane to Crabtree.
It was a storm, a complete storm. The left and right sides of the pocket were in peril. The sense of imminent collapse came from all directions, leaving Lu Ke with no room to breathe. This was only two seconds, but in those two seconds, the opponent had put enough pressure on the pocket and disrupted Lu Ke's two passing opportunities.
Lu Ke looked like a small boat in a storm, but he gritted his teeth, held his breath, and straightened his knees. An incredible amount of power burst out of his body. Following his momentum, he didn't retreat or move sideways. Instead, he took two big steps forward against the flow. He came to a small, calm area in the pocket. The front, back, left, and right sides had all begun to fall apart, but Lu Ke still didn't give up. He lifted his chin and quickly looked for a target in his limited view.
It was a complete mess. The entire short-pass area was a complete mess. White and dark red figures were intertwined like a meteor shower, weaving into a huge net that completely covered the short-pass area, making it pitch black. It seemed that not even a single ray of light could be found.
At that moment, in the nick of time, Lu Ke caught a faint glimmer of light: He found it! Just as the passing window was about to close, Lu Ke's foot pushed hard, and he charged forward fiercely. There was no time to complete the arm's passing motion. He only made a quarter of a circle, relying solely on the strength of his forearm and the quick flick of his wrist. In a flash, all the remaining energy in his body burst out, and he pushed the football out.
It was a desperate move! A make-or-break gamble! The moment the ball was released, Lu Ke's body, due to inertia, collided hard and clumsily with Jonathan Goodwin's back. It was like hitting a wall, and he fell to the ground awkwardly. But his eyes were fixed on the football, not moving at all.
The ball arced through the sky like a sickle moon!
The moment the ball was snapped, Peterson could clearly feel the surge of adrenaline. His feet felt like they had rockets on them, and he charged toward Logan Newman. But unexpectedly, Logan didn't choose a short-pass route. Instead, he charged forward with the same unstoppable momentum. His powerful run was like a rhinoceros charge, astonishingly powerful. In an instant, it seemed as if two high-speed trains were about to collide head-on!
Peterson knew that he couldn't get the upper hand in a physical confrontation. With a brief burst of survival instinct, he abruptly deviated from his path, but he was still hit hard on the shoulder. His body was sent flying like a piece of paper, and his center of gravity spun like a top. Peterson forcefully regained control of his body, looked back at the retreating Logan, and then realized that it was a decoy, because the other four receivers were all in the short-pass area. Lu Ke's first target was Marcus Lynch, but that was shut down.
Peterson immediately realized that Vernon should be the next passing target. Otherwise, why would they use a two-tight-end strategy on the fly? And a tight end is a beacon in the short-pass area, a reliable target.
So, Peterson re-adjusted his body and met up with Schofield to double-team Vernon. Peterson went a step further, went past Vernon's position, and got in front of him, getting ready for an interception. But at that moment, Peterson saw Lu Ke's arm, which was moving at high speed, and the football that was drawing a huge rainbow in the sky. He stood there dumbfounded, his mind completely blank.
What was going on?
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