Chapter 932: Alternating Leads
On the sidelines, the San Francisco 49ers players were watching the game nervously. Many of them were holding their heads in frustration, unable to believe their teammate's careless mistake, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Tackle! Jesus Christ, tackle!"
Lu Ke, who was standing not far away, remained calm and carefully observed the offensive and defensive confrontation. As a quarterback, a calm mind and clear thinking are essential. The style of play can be passionate, but the mindset must be calm and collected.
In fact, this drive had a flaw from the moment of the snap. First, Aldon Smith's early movement caused a five-yard penalty on the defense, which created a favorable condition for the opponent to get a first down.
Then Ahmad Brooks misjudged the play. After Drew Brees had a successful pass, he ignored the running back Mark Ingram's move and focused on getting past the offensive line to sack the quarterback. This also created a gap in the defensive line, which then became a hole for the running back to break through.
And then there was Patrick Willis' missed tackle. A fatal missed tackle.
Even though Willis was in the right place at the right time, his missed tackle was a complete failure for the 49ers' run defense.
Normally, even if a teammate was out of position, other teammates would be able to come in for support and stop the bleeding, which was why the 49ers' defense was ranked first in the league this season. But now, the defensive rhythm among the teammates wasn't in sync, and mistakes followed one after another, making the situation difficult.
As a quarterback, Lu Ke's perspective was different when he was watching from the sidelines. It was similar to a bird's-eye view of a game replay. When Brooks was out of position, Lu Ke saw an open lane for a run. The only question was, could Ingram see it?
It turned out that Ingram, who was playing as a backup, finally seized the most important opportunity of the game.
So, things turned into a disaster, for the San Francisco 49ers, that is.
Ingram ran out of the trap with his powerful run, raising the intensity to the maximum. After breaking through Patrick Willis, he then pushed away the safety Donte Whitner, who came in for support, and before the other safety, Dashon Goldson, could get there, he ran around them. His teammate blocked for him, and he sprinted toward the end zone.
Even the New Orleans Saints themselves didn't expect it.
This was supposed to be a simple second-and-five play. Brees, who hadn't found a good opportunity to pass and had an incomplete pass on a first-and-five, was trying to use Ingram's run to change the pace of the offense. The number of yards gained wasn't the main point. The important thing was to get a first down and change the stagnant pace of the offense with a run.
If Willis had made the tackle, it would have just been a four-yard run. For Brees, that would have been enough.
But they didn't expect to get such a pleasant surprise.
"The New Orleans Saints take the lead again!"
"This was definitely not expected before the game started. The offenses of both teams have shown incredible power, like an upgraded version of the 2011 NFC Divisional Round. With just over three minutes left in the first quarter, there have already been three touchdowns on the field. Now all the pressure is on the San Francisco 49ers' offense again!"
The defense still hasn't been able to get back on track and stop the opponent. So, now it's up to the offense to keep up with the opponent, and in the end, we'll see which offense falls behind first.
Unknowingly, this situation seems to have returned to the divisional round. This was exactly the pace that Drew Brees loved. But the difference was that the last time, it was at the 49ers' home field, and this time, it was at the Saints' home field.
And then, Lu Ke took the field again.
"Play-action pass!"
"This is a passing play. Frank Gore, who was pretending to receive the ball, covered for Lu Ke at the last minute. He took Lu Ke's position and rushed toward the offensive line. This play confused the opposing defensive players. Four defensive linemen and two linebackers all rushed forward, creating a defensive wall to stop the run."
"This is a fatal defensive misjudgment. All the players were fooled by Gore and Lu Ke's realistic handoff!"
"Back-pedaling. Lu Ke is back-pedaling. The entire pocket is like two bulls with their horns locked, completely stuck in place. Unexpectedly, a clean pocket is formed, with no defensive players interfering with Lu Ke's view. Lu Ke throws the ball! The target is Randy Moss!"
"Moss is jumping high!"
"Wait, that's a fake move. Moss and Lu Ke's fake move has fooled the defense again. Now Moss has attracted two defensive players, and the hole in the secondary defense has been exposed. Now the New Orleans Saints' secondary defense has lost its position, and the entire backfield is wide open."
"Michael Crabtree is changing his route! Vernon Davis is also changing his route! They were both running in the short and middle-passing zones, and now they're pushing into the deep zones! And Ted Ginn! Ted Ginn is like an arrow, sprinting forward! The 49ers have formed a three-pronged attack!"
"The Saints' defense is completely in chaos!"
"Lu Ke is still looking. Lu Ke is still moving in the pocket! My God! Has he held onto the ball for too long? The Saints' defense has made a change!"
Lu Ke was intentionally holding onto the ball for a longer time.
The delay caused by the play-action pass was only one second, which passed in a flash. When Crabtree and Vernon both changed their routes, they were only about nine or ten yards away. Even Ginn, the fastest one, had only run about 15 yards. The depth of the offense was still not enough.
At this time, the defensive players in the short-passing zone had already reacted. Besides the two defensive players who were covering Moss, one outside linebacker and one defensive end had started to adjust their defensive strategy. They were all making real-time changes based on the situation on the field.
Lu Ke needed to get their attention.
When Lu Ke continued to hold the ball, the players on the offensive and defensive lines would instinctively rush the quarterback. This would create more space for the secondary to play. With this, the secondary would only have two safeties to cover two wide receivers and one tight end. Lu Ke could easily choose any receiver and maximize the offensive effect.
And it worked.
Lu Ke continued to hold the ball, and the players on the Saints' defensive line all rushed forward, trying to sack the quarterback and end the drive from the source. But they forgot one thing: the number of players on offense and defense is the same.
Four defensive linemen and two linebackers, six players. Five offensive linemen and one running back, six players.
But the defensive line had the illusion of a numbers advantage because they had put more effort into the rush. In the continuous push, they weren't able to break through the pocket immediately. By the time the pocket was finally broken, it was too late, because Lu Ke had already bought enough time to look and had completed the pass before the sack could happen.
There was no fake move. He just threw the football with a quick, decisive motion.
The football went high, high up in the air, drawing a beautiful rainbow arc that flew across the entire field and landed on the player who was sprinting to the front.
"That's a long pass!"
"30-yard line! 40-yard line! Midfield! The football's parabola hasn't reached its highest point yet! 40-yard line! 30-yard line! 20-yard line! Ted Ginn! The 49ers' number 19 is at the point where the football is coming down! It's a pass of about 46 yards! It crossed most of the field and found Lu Ke's most trusted deep threat!"
"My God, Lu Ke's signature move is back at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome!"
"Ginn! Ginn! Ginn makes the catch! The Saints' two safeties, Roman Harper and Rafael Bush, were not able to hold their positions. Two players were covering three, and they simply couldn't keep up. Clearly, Lu Ke has the absolute advantage in this drive."
"Ginn accelerates! He immediately gets past Harper and Bush's position. The field in front of him is wide open, with no defensive players in sight. Ginn! Ted Ginn! Ginn once again shows his absolute advantage in speed. 15-yard line! 10-yard line! 5-yard line! Touchdown! No doubt about it, that's a touchdown!"
"A long pass touchdown! A 46-yard accurate long pass that delivered a fatal blow to the opponent's secondary defense, instantly destroying all the lines like a nuclear weapon! This is the Lu Ke we know! He did it! He did it again!"
"Just when everyone was worried about whether the San Francisco 49ers' offense would be affected by the absence of Logan Newman and the slump of Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis, all those worries can be put aside for now, because they still have Randy Moss and Ted Ginn!"
"Moss and Ginn each used their abilities to score an amazing touchdown, continuing the San Francisco 49ers' powerful offensive momentum! The Saints' defense still can't stop the opponent!"
"This game is so good. The first quarter isn't even over yet, and there have already been four touchdowns on the field. The two teams are not backing down. Now the score is tied again! To our viewers at home, the pressure is now on Drew Brees. Can we... see another touchdown?"
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