Chapter 645: Twenty-Three Seconds
"We are the 49ers! We are warriors! We are the 49ers! We are warriors!"
Jonathan Baldwin stood up, proudly straightened his back, and vigorously waved his hands, shouting with all his might. Even though his voice was already getting hoarse, he was still shouting with abandon.
The light rain in San Francisco seemed to have stopped. The gray sky was clearing up little by little. He couldn't see the sun yet, but he could see a hint of sky blue. The air was filled with a faint moisture and a chill. A light breeze carried a hint of the harshness of winter.
But this couldn't affect the passion and madness of Candlestick Park.
As he shouted, Jonathan's eyes welled up a bit. Even standing on the edge of a cliff, even in a desperate situation, they never gave up hope. That unwavering belief had taken root in their souls, blooming into a golden sunflower that would forever follow the sun's footsteps.
Jonathan wasn't the only one. He turned his head and saw his brother, Ryan Baldwin, standing by his side.
Ryan's legs were trembling slightly. The long standing and cheering had almost exhausted all his energy, but Ryan didn't give up and was not afraid. He stood firm and stubborn, roaring hoarsely. He could clearly feel the surging vitality deep in his soul.
Yes, they were the 49ers! Yes, they were warriors! Yes, they refused to surrender! As long as there was life, the fight would not stop!
Ryan's cheeks were flushed with an unnatural red, but his eyes were bursting with unprecedented vitality. The familiar "Ryan Baldwin" had woken up again. At this moment, he was shouting out loud, joining the other seventy thousand fans at Candlestick Park to form a vast red ocean, completely lost in releasing their inner passion.
One shout after another!
That magnificent red ocean even made the sky-blue sky, which had just cleared up, look dull. It was as if all the light in the world was concentrated on Candlestick Park.
The noisy and sensational sound was running wild in his blood. Lu Ke looked up and glanced at the numbers on the big screen:
"17-24" and "00:23."
The first was the score, the second was the time.
After the punt, the New York Giants' special teams had kicked the ball high and far. The San Francisco 49ers' special teams had made a fair catch immediately after catching the ball, but it still used up three seconds.
Twenty-three seconds, on their own sixteen-yard line. This was their current situation. And they had no timeouts left.
Lu Ke looked around. His determined and sharp eyes fell on each of the offensive players in front of him. The tense, almost suffocating feeling gripped his heart, making it almost impossible to breathe.
"No one believes we can win this game. I can even hear the commentators' words. Twenty-three seconds, no timeouts. What can you do with that? You can't do anything. What if the number fourteen standing on the field has had a great season? He's not Aaron Rodgers. He can't turn the tide. What's more, their offense is no longer what it was."
"This season, their performance has been brilliant enough. Making it to the NFC Championship is the best reward. They lost today, but they won the future. Eli Manning is a better quarterback after all. Let's give the 49ers a round of applause."
Lu Ke was not wearing his helmet at this moment. His short black hair was wet and stuck to his head. His face was pale and covered in sweat. He didn't look like a threat at all, but the look in his eyes was so sharp, so certain, that it burst forth with an incredible amount of energy, locking onto every teammate around him.
"Bullshit! That's all bullshit! Tell them all to get lost!"
Lu Ke swore fiercely. With a gritted-teeth expression, his eyes suddenly became sharp. An aggressive, savage fierceness burst forth from his bones. All his power was instantly released, once again showing the "Bloody Bambi's" tenacity.
"I said! The game is not over yet! We have twenty-three seconds right now. That's enough! Before these twenty-three seconds are up, nothing is decided! Right now, I still believe that the victory belongs to us. I believe it without a doubt."
"Yes, Ted and Michael are injured and out. Yes, Anthony can't provide protection right now. Yes, our offense is no longer what it was. Before today, I had never even spoken to Brett! But I refuse to give up and surrender! We fought all the way here, standing on this stage, and to lose the game like this... I'm not okay with that! I came to the NFC Championship not for second place! The championship is our goal!"
"Only cowards choose to give up and surrender. But what about us? We are..."
Suddenly, Lu Ke's voice was cut off. The thunderous shouts from Candlestick Park cut in at the perfect moment. The shouts of seventy thousand fans, the cheers of seventy thousand fans, the voices of seventy thousand fans were all twisted into a single rope, tying the power of the entire city, the entire Bay Area, and the entire land together. They stood firmly behind them.
"We are! The 49ers! We are! Warriors!"
One roar after another, one wave after another. Their blood began to boil, their eyes became determined, and their muscles tensed up. The brutal, wolf-like nature began to awaken. You could even smell the faint scent of blood in the air.
Lu Ke clenched his fists tightly and shouted, "We are!"
"The 49ers!" All the players shouted in unison.
Lu Ke clenched his fists again, and his voice rose another notch, "We are!"
"Warriors!" All the players howled like wolves, their veins bulging.
"We are the 49ers! We are warriors! We are champions! So now, let's go win the victory that belongs to us!" Lu Ke put his right fist in the middle, and then one by one, the other fists came down. He scanned his teammates again, "On three, everyone shout 'Victory'!"
"One! Two! Three!"
"Victory!"
The San Francisco 49ers' offense quickly lined up. With twenty-three seconds and no timeouts, they had no choice but to try a long pass. This was their only hope. They knew it, and their opponents also knew it. So, the play calls were no longer a secret. It all came down to how the quarterback would choose and control, how he would plan and play the game at the crucial moment.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this NFC Championship has reached its final moments. The San Francisco 49ers have the ball, with twenty-three seconds left in the game, and the team will start their drive from their own sixteen-yard line." In the broadcast booth, Teddy once again took over the narration, trying to give a quick rundown before the final battle.
"This season, the 49ers' rookie quarterback, Lu Ke, has shown his powerful long-passing ability on many occasions. At a crucial moment, he still has the ability to make a game-winning play. But the starting position of this drive is truly terrible. Even if he wants to try a Hail Mary, he needs to advance a certain distance. Troy, Kirk, what do you guys think?" Even though he had seen countless big games, Teddy couldn't help but sweat a little as he turned to his two co-commentators.
Hail Mary. This was a Catholic prayer. In the NFL, it had a special meaning.
The term originated in a college game in 1922, from the traditional football powerhouse, the University of Notre Dame. It was a Catholic school, and Hail Mary was their prayer. It was also widely used in their games. However, it didn't become widely known until 1975.
At that time, in a game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings, the Cowboys' quarterback, Roger Staubach, completed a game-winning long pass in the final seconds. He was a devout Roman Catholic, and in a post-game interview, he said that at the moment he threw the pass, he was silently hoping for a "Hail Mary."
After that, "Hail Mary" was given a special meaning. It specifically referred to a quarterback's desperate long pass aimed at the opponent's end zone in the final seconds of a game, meaning it was a pass that needed a divine blessing to be completed.
Generally, only a long pass of more than forty yards that was aimed at the end zone to challenge for a touchdown could be called a "Hail Mary." Even in an NFL game, this was very rare. As for the success rate, it was even lower. A "Hail Mary" might not even succeed once in an entire season.
The reason was simple. A "Hail Mary" was a last resort when there were no other options in the final seconds. It was aimed directly at the end zone, which meant the defense could easily provide support, create an absolute numerical advantage, easily shut down all the receiving routes, and even make an interception. They had the absolute upper hand.
According to the rules of the game, a quarterback could not pass the ball after crossing the line of scrimmage, and they only had one chance to throw a forward pass.
Now, the San Francisco 49ers' line of scrimmage was on the sixteen-yard line. Even if Lu Ke wanted to try a Hail Mary, the distance was too far. They had to advance. They needed to get past their own forty-yard line at the very least for a Hail Mary attempt to be possible.
Troy Aikman and Kirk Charleston exchanged a look and chuckled.
Kirk was the first to give his opinion, "I don't think the New York Giants will leave any room for them to try. In their next defensive play, they should put more pressure on Lu Ke to reduce his passing space and reduce the difficulty of their own defense."
Aikman nodded in agreement, "At the same time, I also don't think the San Francisco 49ers will risk it. Not because of Lu Ke, but because of the receivers. The performance of Swain and Williams is still a bit lacking. And if he chooses Newman or Davis, a Hail Mary is already difficult. If the passing target is also exposed, it would be a disaster."
Teddy pondered for a moment, "Then let's wait and see how these last twenty-three seconds play out."
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