Chapter 181 179: Reaping the Rewards
"Bambi, that last pass! Wow, twenty-seven yards, a perfect arc through the air! That was truly brilliant!"
"That run, seventeen yards! Bambi, tonight is definitely your night! God, how in the world did you do that?"
"That pass, that pass! Haha, I bet the Cowboys are going to have nightmares about that one. Bambi, great job!"
...
The air was filled with shouts of greeting, cries of wonder, and words of congratulations.
More than half the players in the locker room came over to chat with Lu Ke for a moment, treating him like the man of the hour. Victory can conceal all conflicts, while defeat exposes every problem. Before the day was over, the San Francisco 49ers could still bask in the joy of this win.
As for the battle between Lu Ke and Alex Smith for the starting quarterback position, that was a problem for tomorrow.
Gradually, the celebrations in the locker room wound down. At the end of the day, this was just a regular season game, not the Super Bowl. One by one, the players returned to their usual routines: getting massages, showering, having injuries checked, and so on. But the joy and elation still shone on their faces, and the atmosphere in the locker room was warm and congenial.
Lu Ke was now sitting in an ice bath, relaxing his muscles.
An ice bath was essentially just sitting in cold water filled with ice, the temperature kept between twelve and fourteen degrees Celsius. It served two purposes: one, to lower the body temperature that rose after intense exercise and alleviate central nervous system fatigue; and two, to increase cardiovascular blood flow, reduce vascular pressure, and in turn, eliminate metabolic byproducts from the muscles to prevent potential injuries.
Using an ice bath to regulate the body after intense activity and training was a highly effective recovery method. Typically, players needed to soak for about twenty minutes after a game. Lu Ke was in the middle of his own ice bath now.
In fact, thanks to the Dallas Cowboys' game plan today, which focused mainly on pass defense, blitzes weren't used often. Physical contact against Lu Ke had been infrequent, and he was only sacked once the entire game. The physicality was on a completely different level compared to the first game.
Coupled with last week's strength training, his ability to take a hit seemed to have improved slightly. As a result, he felt less physical fatigue and more mental exhaustion, which led to muscle tension. So, to relax his body, Lu Ke decided to take the ice bath anyway.
Sitting in the tub, Lu Ke was a conspicuous figure, and players came by one after another to high-five him in celebration. However, Vernon Davis and Parris Harrisson were not among them.
The boisterous discussions and congratulations continued for nearly ten minutes before things finally quieted down. Only then did Lu Ke have a moment to calm his mind, summon the system in his head, and accept his mission rewards.
A series of DINGs cascaded down like a melodious wind chime, playing an uplifting tune. Lu Ke eagerly began to read his unread messages.
"Congratulations on completing the game mission..."
"Congratulations on completing the game mission..."
"Congratulations on completing the game mission..."
The same phrase appeared three times. He had earned three base points for scoring three touchdowns, one base point for reaching the passing yardage goal, and three base points for winning the game.
After tallying everything up, he had earned a total of seven base points from the second week of the regular season. Compared to the massive haul of fifteen base points from the previous week, this week's earnings seemed a bit paltry. But this was the regular season, with a game held every week. Over sixteen games, the cumulative total of base points would be quite substantial.
That was, of course, assuming he could complete the game missions every week.
As the season progressed, winning would only become more difficult. In the last ten years, only one team had managed an undefeated regular season. In 2007, the New England Patriots posted a brilliant 16-0 record, but unfortunately, they lost the climactic Super Bowl to the Eli Manning-led New York Giants, falling just short of a perfect season.
In the entire history of the league, only two teams had ever finished with an undefeated record after the regular season was officially expanded to sixteen games.
This just went to show that victory was never guaranteed, no matter how hard you fought. The beauty of football lies in how it is the ultimate expression of teamwork. While a quarterback's importance is undeniable, he is still just one link in the chain.
There was also another condition: Lu Ke had to win the battle for the starting position.
It wasn't just Alex Smith next week, or Colin Kaepernick the week after; in every game of his rookie season, the fight to be the starter would be a recurring theme. Because every rookie had to prove themselves and build trust through game after game.
He pulled his thoughts back to the present. The season was only two games in; the "future" was still too distant. 'I should focus on the here and now, take it one step at a time, one game at a time. Then, everything else will fall into place naturally.'
Just as Lu Ke was about to consider how to allocate his base points, he noticed another unread message: "Congratulations on completing Special Mission: Game Improver."
For a moment, it didn't register. He stared blankly for a second before finally recalling it. The system had issued a new special mission after halftime, right before the kickoff of the second half. Things had been too urgent then for him to read the details, so he had just thrown himself wholeheartedly into the game.
Instead of rushing to check the rewards, he opened the special mission first and read through it carefully.
"Special Mission: Game Improver.
Mission Description: During the second half of the Week 2 regular season game against the Dallas Cowboys, successfully adjust your play. Learn from the mistakes and experiences of the first half, make targeted tactical changes, and re-strategize. Learn to read the game's flow, control its tempo, and adapt to the on-field situation, thereby taking a step toward maturity as a player.
Mission Requirements: Achieve a pass completion rate of 65% or higher; limit interceptions to one or fewer.
Mission Reward: Special Points +2.
Failure Penalty: Duration of strength training doubled. Training volume on rest days doubled. Experience facial flushing for thirty minutes during daily media interviews."
Even though he was mentally prepared and gradually getting used to the system, Lu Ke couldn't help but roll his eyes when he saw the failure penalty. A curse almost escaped his lips. The first two were one thing, but what the hell was the third one? 'Am I supposed to give an interview while blushing bashfully for half an hour? I'd rather skip the interview and get fined by the league—'
The league had an official rule: on designated media days, every player was required to be present and stay for at least fifteen minutes. Failure to do so would result in a fine, and repeat offenses would draw a warning from the league.
He took a deep breath, and then another. Sitting in the tub, enjoying the ice bath, Lu Ke gradually calmed down. Ignoring the failure penalty, his eyes fell back on the mission description, and he began to mull it over.
In essence, the Football Superstar System was a support system. It provided help, guidance, and direction, but it was through the player's own efforts that they would become a superstar. Today's special mission further illustrated this point.
The reason competitive sports are so gripping and thrilling is because the action on the field is ever-changing, unpredictable, and volatile. Every game is different, always filled with unexpected turns and variables. This is especially true for team sports, and football is certainly no exception.
As the commander on the field, a quarterback's job isn't just to pass and run the offense. They also need to control the entire game's tempo and flow, identify its challenges and key problems, and make adjustments on the fly. The reason elite quarterbacks are called "elite"—and why there are only about four in the entire league—is because their ability to read, interpret, and understand the game is a cut above everyone else's.
Football is an incredibly physical sport, but relatively speaking, quarterback is the "safest" position on the field.
First, the quarterback has the pocket protection of the Offensive Line, which forms a protective wall. Second, depending on the play call, the quarterback can move away from the Defensive Line's rush to protect himself. Third, after the quarterback releases the ball, league rules give him the most comprehensive protection; any late hits are strictly illegal.
Instead, the quarterback is responsible for an immense amount of mental processing in terms of tactical execution, strategic planning, and real-time decision-making. To put it simply, while physical talent is certainly important, for a quarterback, their mind and their touch are even more crucial.
This is why during the Rookie Training Camp, while everyone has to take the Fonderick test, teams pay the most attention to the scores of the quarterbacks.
It's for this very reason that while strong, mobile quarterbacks have risen in prominence in recent years, they have yet to become the league's mainstream archetype.
During today's game, the Cowboys' targeted strategy in the first half had completely neutralized Lu Ke. No matter how the coaching staff adjusted the game plan, his hands were tied, and he simply couldn't get anything going. This wasn't just a reflection of his lack of experience and countermeasures; it was a sign of his inability to read the game. Caught in the middle of it, he was essentially playing blind.
He couldn't see the forest for the trees.
That's why the system had assigned this special mission: to push Lu Ke to take a step back, re-evaluate the game from a higher perspective, clear his mind of all distractions, and focus purely on selecting his targets, deciding his passing lanes, and reading the defense. It was a small reminder, a bit of guidance, a little incentive to try and get Lu Ke back on the right track.
If he had failed, the penalty wouldn't have been fatal. But if he succeeded, the reward was two special points—another example of the system's tough but well-intentioned guidance.
Looking back on the game now, he realized that if he hadn't managed to snap out of it during halftime, the result would have been a loss. No matter how the coaches had changed the game plan, he wouldn't have been able to execute it or escape his confusion.
That was the true significance of the special mission.