Chapter 272 270: Unbalanced Rhythm
"Hike!"
Lu Ke's concentration was at its peak. The moment his hands felt the familiar leather of the football, he took a single drop step, his gaze sweeping to the left. Michael Crabtree, Ted Ginn Jr., and Marcus Lynch shot forward, running three distinctly different routes.
The Philadelphia Eagles had opted for zone coverage. Following Lu Ke's eyes, the defensive players quickly began to tighten their net. They watched Lu Ke's throwing motion intently, their feet shifting rapidly to their right to cover the routes of the three receivers.
Meanwhile, to Lu Ke's right, Kyle Williams and Logan Newman also charged forward.
Williams ran a short three-yard route before making a nimble cut outward, shaking the cornerback responsible for his zone. The defender seemed distracted, his attention following Lu Ke's gaze to the other side of the field. Williams effortlessly sprinted toward the sideline, and just as he neared it, he made another sharp ninety-degree turn and continued downfield.
Newman accelerated, then accelerated again, pushing his speed to the limit. After sprinting for about thirteen yards, he watched the distance between himself and the safety on the right side shrink. Just as they were about to collide, he made a sharp turn, cutting outward in a small arc to shake off the defender. The sideline was now just within reach.
Lu Ke raised his right arm, but his body pivoted slightly, turning from the left to the right. Without any pause or hesitation, his eyes swept across the field, locating Williams and Newman. Almost simultaneously, his arm whipped forward, unleashing a flat, straight pass that shot through the air like an arrow loosed from a bow.
A fifteen-yard pass, delivered in the blink of an eye! The target: number eighty-eight, Logan Newman!
"The snap! San Francisco 49ers' number fourteen takes no drop back, looks left for a target—number nineteen Ted Ginn Jr. is open! But—whoa! Number fourteen turns, and with a flick of the wrist, no hesitation at all, he fires a quick, fifteen-yard bullet pass! The Philadelphia Eagles never saw it coming, their defense couldn't keep up!"
Kirk's commentary mirrored the developing trend on the field, his rapid-fire words brimming with passion and excitement.
"Newman and Williams are both open! The Eagles' zone defense has been completely suppressed, torn open in multiple places. Newman! Number fourteen Lu Ke chooses Logan Newman, his most familiar and trusted target, but… wait, the pass is a little overthrown! It looks like it's heading out of bounds!"
"He caught it! Newman makes the reception! At the very last second, Newman barely managed to haul in the pass! Both feet were in bounds, no question! A successful pass, and a successful catch! Beautiful, just beautifully executed! Now let's take a look at the replay."
After successfully deceiving the Defense Team, Lu Ke wasted no time on fancy moves. He turned and decisively threw the football. However, the Offense Line was breached again. An outside linebacker looped around in a small arc and charged toward Lu Ke.
Unfortunately for him, Lu Ke's release was just too fast. Before the linebacker could even get close, the football was already gone. In the end, the outside linebacker could only grab Lu Ke's left arm in frustration, trying to throw him off balance. He ultimately refrained from a hard tackle to avoid a roughing the passer penalty.
It was a short and fast fifteen-yard pass, but its trajectory was slightly off from what was intended, heading toward the outside of the sideline. However, the arc of the pass was flat and quick, aimed at the standard chest-high area. After shaking his defender, Newman got himself into the ball's path just in time and made a clean catch.
But Newman had to turn around to face Lu Ke to make the catch, leaving his back to the sideline. His momentum from the sprint was already fierce, making his center of gravity a bit unstable. After securing the catch and keeping both feet in bounds, he stumbled out of bounds the very next moment, unable to advance the ball any further.
"Thrilling, fast, and clean. That pass was like a lightning bolt. The release time was just 2.66 seconds, and that includes the time for a pump fake. He faked out nearly the entire Eagles Defense Team, then chose his most reliable target for a fifteen-yard gain.
Speed. The core concept of the entire play was speed.
Lu Ke's offensive thinking is incredibly clear: pump fake, draw the defense, real throw, pass. All the movements were executed in one smooth motion. From snap to release, he compressed the time to the absolute minimum, using dazzling route combinations to pin down the members of the Defense Team. At the same time, he used his control over the pass's arc and power to find his target accurately. The entire play left no room or time to breathe, catching the opponent completely off guard.
On third down, he managed to rip open a seam and lead his team forward. The Eagles' Defense Team looked disorganized, completely drawn out of position, and with few answers. Wow, the San Francisco 49ers' number fourteen continues to put on an eye-opening performance today!"
In the broadcast booth, Kirk and Teddy were analyzing the various details of that last offensive down. Meanwhile, on the field, the home crowd was booing. "BOOOOOO!" The overwhelming sound washed down like a torrential storm.
Logan Newman could be seen forcefully waving his right hand, clutching the football tightly. He brandished it toward the fans, a taunting display to vent his frustration and pent-up feelings. "That's right! Now, who's the man? Who's the man!" Finally, he slammed the football hard onto the ground.
Kyle Williams ran over and joined Newman, celebrating wildly and further provoking the home fans.
In response, the home crowd's booing grew even louder. The "BOOOOOO" intensified, dense and vast, like dark clouds blotting out the sun, leaving no space unfilled.
Among the nearly seventy thousand fans in the stadium, only a few hundred scattered away fans in white jerseys could be seen. Before the thunderous home crowd, they were but a drop in the ocean, scattered in various corners of the stands, completely unable to form any effective counter-support. And so, the home-field advantage reached its peak.
After completing the pass, Lu Ke noted his own inaccuracy. 'My Mid-range Pass Accuracy still isn't good enough.' The fifteen-yard pass had been off by about a yard, not just horizontally but also vertically—the trajectory was a little too high, landing near Newman's chin and collarbone instead of his chest.
'If Newman wasn't so familiar with my passing trajectory and velocity, another player, even if they'd caught it, probably wouldn't have been able to control it and might have just fallen out of bounds. That would have been an incomplete pass.'
'My touch feels a little tight today.'
"Bambi?" Rupati approached him again. It wasn't just him; the other four players on the Offense Line all looked over. Another linebacker had broken through on the last play. Although it hadn't resulted in a sack or a hurried throw, as Lu Ke had gotten the pass off first, they still shot worried glances his way.
Rupati's face was filled with apology. His attention had been completely focused on Jenkins. By the time he noticed the outside linebacker's move in his peripheral vision and tried to cover, Jenkins had already tied him up. A slight pause, a tug, and the outside linebacker had cut into the pocket. Rupati hadn't been able to react in time.
Lu Ke waved his hand dismissively. "I'm fine! Let's keep going, keep going!"
That last play gained fifteen yards, securing not only a first down but also bringing the San Francisco 49ers' offense to their own 48-yard line, with the halfway line just ahead. They needed to maintain this momentum. Under Lu Ke's leadership, the offense huddled up again to continue their drive.
From their own 48-yard line, first down. Lu Ke used a quick screen pass to find Ted Ginn Jr. for a four-yard gain. Then on second down, a powerful run by Kendall Hunter gained another three yards. On third down, with solid pocket protection, Lu Ke snuck in a seven-yard pass. Kyle Williams made the catch and pushed forward for another three yards.
And so, the San Francisco 49ers reached the opposing 38-yard line. They only needed to gain a few more yards to be in field goal range.
From the opponent's 38-yard line, first down. Lu Ke connected with Michael Crabtree on a six-yard pass, and though the ball arrived on target, a defender swatted it away at the last moment, resulting in an incompletion. On second down, Marcus Lynch found a gap and ran the ball for a four-yard gain.
And so, they now faced a third-and-six.
After the snap, Lu Ke took a quick drop back, creating distance between himself and the Offense and Defense Lines. It was a short pass play; he could release the ball as soon as he raised his arm. But just as his right hand came up, a player appeared in his right field of vision—Philadelphia Eagles' number ninety-three, Defensive End Jason Babin.
This time, it wasn't his blind side on the left, but his right side.
Lu Ke could clearly see number ninety-three's figure closing in fast. Although footwork and mobility weren't Lu Ke's strengths, he grew calmer in moments of crisis. His feet paused; instead of scrambling in the opposite direction, he proactively stepped up, though he slightly offset his path, continuing to press forward in an offensive posture.
It was an incredibly risky move. Number ninety-three seemed a bit surprised, but his own movements didn't hesitate in the slightest. He lunged forward fiercely. Lu Ke dipped his left shoulder, narrowly avoiding the first tackle attempt, then raised his right arm, whipped it forward, and sent the football flying.
Having missed the initial tackle, number ninety-three, Babin, shot his arms down, wrapped them tightly around Lu Ke's waist, and dragged him to the ground.