Chapter 790: Success After Success
After a series of short passes, combined with a fake run by the running back to continuously distract the defense, Lu Ke, without any warning, chose a middle pass in a regular first-and-10 situation on their own 44-yard line. The football's arc was not high, just gently flying over the heads of the offense and defense, and it sprinted toward a length of about 13 yards.
It was Randy Moss again!
After the snap, Moss charged forward without a care, sprinting into the deep area. He ran past the 10-yard line in one go and continued to sprint at full speed for a greater distance. Fifteen and twenty yards were already within range, which forced the covering safety to speed up.
"Randy Moss." Just that name was enough to make one alert. What's more, it was Moss who had already scored two touchdowns today, which meant he could not be taken lightly.
But at that moment, Moss slammed on the brakes, completing a U-turn with almost no pause. He used the powerful momentum of the turn to increase his speed and started to run back in an even more aggressive manner. The whole process was so fast that the safety, who had fully charged forward, couldn't adjust his center of gravity at all. The difference in physical talent was obvious.
Moss only used three small steps to adjust his body and was ready to make the catch.
This time, the collaboration between Moss and Lu Ke was still not perfect. The power of Lu Ke's pass was beyond Moss's imagination; it was a little too fast. Moss almost missed the catch, but he cleverly slapped the football with his hand, forcefully interrupting the football's straight-line advance. Then, he stumbled for two steps, changed his body's center of gravity, and successfully hugged the football in his arms.
But this slight deviation, after all, still ruined the flow of the entire offense. Two defensive players arrived in time, one in front and one behind. They took advantage of Moss's unstable center of gravity, and a collision successfully forced Moss to the ground, resulting in a dead ball.
In a top-level game, such details are often the moments that decide the outcome. On the one hand, Moss was still not at his peak. On the other hand, there was still room for improvement in the chemistry between Moss and Lu Ke. However, this was a minor complaint. This surprise middle pass still successfully gained 13 yards and got another first down.
"Wow, beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! In this series of continuous drives, Lu Ke has shown the on-field control of a peak Peyton Manning. Yes, you heard me right, my comparison is Peyton Manning."
Kirk, after all, couldn't hold back. His exclamations came out one after another, as if the most exciting and essential part of the game had just begun.
"The running routes of the receivers, the variety of tactical layouts, and the combination of risk factors, Lu Ke is displaying the passing intelligence of a quarterback to the fullest. This is precisely Peyton Manning's killer weapon on the field. On a side note, in the two 'Manning Bowls' of their careers so far, Peyton has been the winner."
The so-called Manning Bowl is the showdown between Peyton Manning and Eli Manning. Because the two belong to different conferences, according to the system, a showdown only happens once every four years, just like the World Cup and the Olympics. This makes the "Manning Bowl" very meaningful. So far, the two matchups have both ended with Peyton winning.
"And compared to Peyton Manning, Lu Ke's passing accuracy is even better. Just now, without anyone noticing, Lu Ke completed five consecutive passes, all of which were successful. The accuracy and rhythm of the entire offense have undergone a new change, and the interesting thing is that the on-field player lineup has only changed with the addition of Randy Moss."
"Now, Lu Ke is using Peyton's way to defeat Eli. At least, that's his plan. As for whether he can succeed, let's wait and see."
If in his rookie season, Kirk's praise was reserved, and he saw the infinitely potential Lu Ke as a rising comet, then in this season, Kirk had truly elevated Lu Ke to a new level. Because of the accumulation of the past season and the past five games, Lu Ke had won Kirk's respect with his actual performance.
While the studio was talking, the San Francisco 49ers had already lined up again.
On the opposing team's 43-yard line, it was still first-and-10.
The consecutive successful passes forced the New York Giants' linebackers to retreat a little, making a slight change to their defensive rhythm. But was this a real change, or was it a smoke screen to induce a running play? The inside linebackers' attention was still on the running back, so it was hard to tell.
Lu Ke calmly and seriously read the defense.
This was not a complex defensive formation. The first line had four defensive linemen. The second line had three linebackers. The third line had two cornerbacks. And finally, two safeties.
The entire arrangement was clear and direct, easy to see.
But after a detailed analysis, you could find differences.
The San Francisco 49ers' offensive formation was a standard two-by-two. On the left were Vernon and Moss, and on the right were Logan and Ginn. In addition, it was a standard shotgun formation, with Lu Ke standing four yards behind the center and Marcus standing three yards behind Lu Ke. This also caused the New York Giants' defensive positions to change slightly.
On the left, the New York Giants' Pro Bowl defensive end, Pierre-Paul, had moved out a little to cover Vernon Davis. There was also a cornerback covering Randy Moss.
On the right, the New York Giants' outside linebacker, Linval Joseph, had moved over to cover Logan Newman with a mismatch. There was also a cornerback covering Ted Ginn.
The two safeties at the back, one was obviously closer to the left, covering Moss, and the other was in the middle, ready to assist in the defense, becoming the last line of defense for the entire defense.
What did this mean?
It meant that in the middle, there were only three defensive linemen covering five offensive linemen. There were only two linebackers who were not too far behind the defensive linemen. One was covering Marcus Lynch, and the other was a mobile player. If Lu Ke's analysis of the video playback was correct, this player should have the responsibility of retreating to assist in the middle-pass area.
In other words, this was a standard pass defense. All four receiving players and one running back had a one-on-one coverage, and there were also two to three mobile players to assist.
If Lu Ke chose to run the ball at this moment, he could at least gain five yards for Marcus. As for the effect of the running play, it was up to Marcus.
But, was the defensive strategy really that simple?
Lu Ke's mind was working quickly. Countless tactical combinations flashed by. Without any hesitation, he straightened his body, walked forward, quickly shouted two snap counts, and changed the drive's tactics. However, the entire San Francisco 49ers' offense didn't move or change at all, as if Lu Ke's tactical instructions were meaningless.
Was this Lu Ke's smoke screen?
"Hut!"
Without any pretense or flair, Lu Ke quickly gave the snap count. After grabbing the football, he turned in place and made a motion as if handing the football to Marcus. But Marcus didn't even reach out. He just brushed past Lu Ke and quickly ran out along the slot on the right side.
This was a passing play!
It was not a fake run and real pass. The hand-off motion was just a part of the tactic, meant to attract the attention of the defensive players and gain more time to observe. That's why Marcus didn't stop and just ran out directly.
Sure enough, in the confrontation between the defensive and offensive lines, the New York Giants only had three players, so their impact was insufficient. The entire San Francisco 49ers' pocket protection was as solid as a rock. Even Pierre-Paul, who had always maintained his impact, was locked in a head-on collision with Vernon Davis and had no time to rush the pocket.
Pierre-Paul immediately noticed something was wrong, because Vernon wasn't advancing. He was just grappling with him in the position of the offensive line, seemingly purely using a one-on-one to consume the Giants' defensive power and gain more space for the pass. This made Pierre-Paul realize something was wrong. He immediately gave up on Vernon and quickly dropped back.
As expected, the area where the short and middle passes meet was already a chaotic mess.
Marcus cut in from the slot, Logan cut horizontally from the inside, and Moss went around from the outside. The three players simultaneously created a big net with their different running routes in the area between five and fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. What was even more deadly was that when Pierre-Paul dropped back, Vernon immediately took a step and slipped into the short-pass area, which was five yards away, with a series of small steps.
Four receiving targets, making everyone tense!
The New York Giants' defense was completely flustered. One defensive end, three linebackers, and two cornerbacks were all stacked in the same area. There was no tactic to speak of. They were swarming like headless chickens.
Two players were defending Moss, two were defending Logan, two were defending Marcus, and Vernon was surprisingly left alone, successfully tearing open a gap. This was adding insult to injury for the flustered New York Giants' defense. Pierre-Paul's first reaction was to go forward and cover Vernon.
But at that moment, Pierre-Paul's peripheral vision caught Lu Ke's movement:
A quick dropback, a quick adjustment, without any pause or hesitation, a sudden step forward, and after his muscles were tensed to the maximum, he flawlessly poured his strength into his arm. Just when everyone in the stadium had forgotten, Lu Ke once again emphasized with his actions that his killer weapon was not a short pass, a middle pass, or even a tactical layout, but a deep pass!
This was a standard super rainbow pass. Just from the rising parabolic curve, you could tell that it was at least a 30-yard pass. So, the target was...
Ted Ginn!
Damn it!
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