Chapter 783: Creating a Miracle
Kirk was ecstatic, Teddy was ecstatic, Sun Tongfei was ecstatic, and Candlestick Park was ecstatic. Even Harbaugh on the sideline was fired up, waving his right hand like a windmill after a home run in a baseball game, urging the offense to quickly build momentum.
On the radio, you could clearly hear Troy Bauer's roar, "A run! It's a quarterback run! Jesus Christ! Bambi! Bambi is running! Incredible! The San Francisco 49ers' number 14 quarterback is running the ball! What in the world is happening? Bambi is running again!"
"At a crucial moment, Bambi first dodged Jason Pierre-Paul's sack, then dodged Linval Joseph's coverage, and after countless difficulties in finding passing space, just when everyone thought he would choose to pass, Bambi started to run with the ball!"
"Oh my God! Oh, my God! This is a miracle! A miracle!"
"Five yards! Ten yards! Bambi! Bambi! Bambi is unstoppable! Marcus Lynch is blocking! Logan Newman is blocking! Ted Ginn is blocking! The New York Giants' entire defense's pursuit speed is completely blocked, unable to form an immediate encirclement! Bambi is still sprinting! Fifteen yards! Twenty yards! Bambi! Oh, Bambi!"
"He's out of bounds! Defensive end Justin Tuck and outside linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka finally get back in time. Bambi, who was sprinting along the sideline, had his running route squeezed. He didn't hesitate and ran out of bounds immediately, voluntarily ending this run! He avoided a collision! This is a 23-yard run! Unbelievable! Absolutely unbelievable!"
"A brilliant drive!"
"Who would have thought? So far in the game, the 49ers' longest run came from their quarterback Lu Ke, this traditional pocket passer who, with a series of dazzling tactical deployments, not only successfully disrupted the opponent's defensive plan but also won a completely open space for himself!"
"He didn't suffer any collisions or any containment, and he easily completed the run! Twenty-three yards! This is a 23-yard run! It completely overshadowed the underperforming Marcus Lynch and Frank Gore. This is a scene that no one could have predicted!"
"After entering the second half, the New York Giants accelerated again. Both their offense and defense showed great form and further widened the score, which also put the San Francisco 49ers in a more difficult situation! But it was in this difficult situation that Lu Ke bravely stepped up and, with his own two feet—literally—led the team to a mind-boggling run!"
"Last season, we repeatedly witnessed such crucial moments. Lu Ke, with his excellent performance, pulled the San Francisco 49ers back from the edge of the cliff and returned to the path of victory! So, in this game, can we still witness such a moment?"
On the radio, Troy's thunderous, bullet-like commentary was non-stop. The second half of the game had just begun and had already quickly entered its climax. First, the New York Giants' touchdown, followed by the 49ers' counterattack. This game was truly too exciting, so much so that it made people breathless.
But for Sun Tongfei, there was no need to breathe, because he had completely forgotten about it and was just shouting frantically, "Ahhhhhh!"
But the venting only lasted for a moment. Immediately after, he could hear a chorus of "shhh" from the entire stadium. It wasn't a complaint but a call for silence. Every fan was turning their heads and putting their fingers to their lips, signaling for everyone to be quiet.
Subconsciously, Sun Tongfei tightly closed his mouth, and then the entire Candlestick Park fell into a dead silence. He could even clearly hear the sound of the wind gently flowing. Only then did Sun Tongfei notice that the San Francisco 49ers' offense had quickly arrived at the 46-yard line, quickly lined up, and was ready for the next drive.
The sound of Lu Ke calling out the play echoed clearly in Candlestick Park. It was as if there was only this one sound left in the world, resonating in his ears, steady, powerful, and focused. There was no need for an extra slogan. The blood-pumping excitement was already starting to gurgle in every spectator's veins.
As a potential quarterback, Sun Tongfei was even more passionate and couldn't sit still. His muscles were all tense, and he stared intently at the field.
"Hut!"
Overlooking from the stands, you could see red jerseys and white jerseys intertwining and surging on the entire field.
It was still the standard 2x2 formation, still the standard pistol formation.
But the running routes instantly became dazzling. The two players on the left and the two on the right started at the same time and accelerated toward the center. The two wide receivers were on the outside, and the two tight ends were on the inside.
At this moment, the two wide receivers on the outside used their speed advantage to the extreme. Like passing on a curve, they suddenly increased their speed to the max, getting ahead of the two tight ends and entering the central area first. But the two of them paused for a moment, both making a 90-degree turn, a sudden stop and a sudden turn, and changed their running routes.
Ginn ran in a straight line toward the deep area, and Moss ran in a straight line toward the short-pass area.
A half-step slower, the running routes of the two tight ends also converged and overlapped in the central area, but neither of them stopped. They continued to rush forward along a straight line. The one from left to right rushed to the right side, and the one from right to left rushed to the left side. The instant cross-over created countless empty spaces for a catch in the short-pass area.
The New York Giants' defense still didn't change their tactics. It could be said that they didn't have time to change their tactics, or it could be said that they didn't think it was necessary to change them.
But the San Francisco 49ers' offense, through the movement of the four receiving players, completely messed up the arrangement in the short-pass area. Not only did the four players responsible for man-to-man coverage overlap their defensive areas, but even the linebackers in the short-pass area were forced to adjust their positions. Their defensive positioning was more or less off.
Then, they saw… Marcus Lynch.
It was a running play again!
After the snap, Lu Ke dropped back quickly to create space and made a motion of looking for a running route, but Marcus was always following him closely. When the running positions of the four receiving players had converged in the central area, Lu Ke handed the football to Marcus.
It was still a running play. The only difference was that this time it was completed by the authentic running back Marcus.
Maybe it was because the Boost Aura was still in effect, maybe it was because Lu Ke's run just now was too destructive, maybe it was because the runs of the four receivers were confusing, or maybe it was a combination of all the reasons. Whatever the specific reason, the result was that...
Marcus, running along the outside slot route on the right, broke through the not-so-accurate block of Justin Tuck and successfully created a lane for himself. After only rushing four yards, he was met with a timely cover by a linebacker. Marcus, who was fully focused, didn't let his guard down. After making a sudden stop and a turn to dodge Kiwanuka's cover, his run was unstoppable!
He ran with power for 11 yards before being stopped by the encirclement of three defensive players.
It could be seen that the Boost Aura was not an instant effect but a gradual improvement. Marcus's state had not fully recovered yet. With his usual running style, he could have broken out of the defensive encirclement and continued to look for space, after all, the defensive players' start was a full step slow. But... he didn't.
However, at least Marcus's recovery was a good sign, and this was still good news.
After two consecutive running plays, Lu Ke also found Vernon with a quick short pass from three yards away. The aggressive Pierre-Paul failed to grab Vernon in time and lost his balance, failing to achieve his original intention of a sack and also failing to stop Vernon. This created a very small space for Vernon to make a run.
Before the cornerback and safety's defense could completely close in, Vernon continued to gain three yards, for a total of six yards. So, they faced a second-and-four situation. At this moment, the San Francisco 49ers had already reached the opponent's 39-yard line. The speed of the drive instantly picked up.
On the surface, the New York Giants' defensive intensity remained the same, and there were no serious defensive mistakes. But between their gain and the 49ers' loss, the 49ers' momentum had gradually started to rise. They regained their form effortlessly. This could truly be called a miracle and was simply amazing!
Everyone knew that the San Francisco 49ers had started their powerful counterattack mode, and this drive was extremely important.
If they succeeded, the balance of victory would have more variables. At the very least, the home team's morale would be revived. If they failed, the home team's overall state could face the risk of further decline. The subtle and magical nature of a game's momentum was exactly like this.
Success or failure, it all came down to this drive!
Lu Ke, standing on the field, showed no fear or hesitation, as if he didn't realize the importance of this drive, or rather, he remained steady and calm.
"Hut!"
Without any hesitation, after completing the play call, Lu Ke decisively announced the snap. The San Francisco 49ers' offensive formation seemed to remain unchanged, but after the snap, the commentators could clearly feel that Lu Ke's pocket footwork had changed. Was this…
Was Lu Ke going to run with the ball himself again?
No, wait, this is a pass! This is a pass!
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