American Football: King of the Bay Area

Jim Hubble rubbed his temples, a dull headache setting in.

As a head coach, tactical arrangements, on-field strategy, and player development were his strengths. But interpersonal relationships and social graces were his weaknesses. This was true whether he was facing the media, the owner, or the players. Locker room issues were particularly thorny, and he had no idea how to handle them, nor any desire to get involved.

He didn’t know what had happened in the locker room, what had caused the conflicts, or what was really going on. To be precise, he wasn’t interested in finding out either.

In Jim’s mind, locker room issues were the team captain’s responsibility. Letting players communicate amongst themselves was the most convenient and effective method. He could focus on his coaching duties, while the trivial stuff was left to the specialists. It was a win-win.

But now, things clearly weren’t that simple.

Uncharacteristically, Jim didn’t dismiss the rest of the coaching staff or stubbornly stick to his own opinion. Instead, he asked, ”If Lu Ke continues as the starting quarterback, do you really think the team’s conflicts will worsen? Even if we keep winning?”

It was an interesting way to put the question.

Jim’s focus wasn’t on solving the problem, but on questioning the possibility of it getting worse. If he could, he would have undoubtedly continued to ignore it. It was like getting an injury and just slapping a Band-Aid on it, hoping it would heal on its own, rather than properly examining and dressing the wound.

Still, it was a start.

Kip opened his mouth, unsure how to respond. He couldn’t predict the future. ”At the very least, Vernon Davis and Lu Ke’s relationship has already improved.” Kip could only shrug, offering a roundabout explanation. ”Are you saying you still want to choose Lu Ke as the starting quarterback?”

Jim didn’t answer directly, changing the subject instead. ”Has Alex started his passing drills?”

”Yes.” As the quarterback coach, Kip refocused and spoke seriously. ”He’s still the same Alex Smith we all know.” Kip had also come to the San Francisco 49ers this season, but even before that, everyone in the Alliance knew about Alex, and Kip was no exception. ”His short and mid-range passes are stable, his mechanics are sound, and his footwork is light yet solid. But his long ball still hasn’t shown any improvement.”

Admittedly, Alex’s arm strength wasn’t outstanding, and the consistency of his long passes dropped sharply. However, the bigger issue was his lack of confidence. He was timid, even, afraid to attempt deep throws for fear of an interception. But in reality, Alex attempted so few long passes that his interception count was always kept at an extremely low number, so it wasn’t a case of too many interceptions affecting his confidence.

Sometimes, the mere existence of a deep-threat pass is more about keeping the Defense Team honest. If an offense can run the ball, throw short passes, and also go deep, the defense will naturally be run ragged. But without the ability to strike deep, the defense can afford to concentrate its coverage.

This was Alex’s problem, and at the same time, Lu Ke’s strength. One was conservative, the other aggressive. Both were double-edged swords, full of uncertainty.

Jim gave a slight nod to show he understood. ”Will Alex be doing contact drills today? How’s his knee injury recovery?”

This question wasn’t for Kip, but for Mark Uyeyama, the team’s head of strength and conditioning. Besides player strength training, they were also responsible for recovery, rehabilitation, and so on.

”The team doctor has given the green light. Alex’s injury has healed, and he can proceed with contact drills,” Mark said simply and clearly. ”We’ll need to see how he does in practice to know the specifics.”

The cruciate ligament is one of an athlete’s most vulnerable body parts. After recovering from such an injury, many players have psychological hurdles and are hesitant to make certain moves. It’s a process. A small number of players never fully recover; they can live their daily lives, but their game-day form is gone forever.

Jim gave another slight nod, remaining silent as he processed the information. ”Kip, Craig, has Lu Ke finished reading the entire playbook? What I mean is, for the Week 2 game, our tactical arrangements weren’t varied enough. We were clearly unprepared for the Cowboys’ specific schemes.”

”Lu Ke sent me an email last night. He’d already watched the tape of the Week 2 regular season game, analyzed all the plays, and also analyzed his own tactical mistakes and the Cowboys’ play-calling.” The content of Kip’s words was a surprise, but on second thought, it made perfect sense. In just a few weeks, Lu Ke’s consistent hard work and diligence were slowly becoming a habit.

”You got one too?” Craig looked surprised, but his expression quickly turned to delight, and he nodded repeatedly. ”He doesn’t seem like a rookie at all. He asked a ton of questions about tactical derivatives and variations. Some of them were dumb, definitely rookie questions, but some were brilliant, truly eye-opening.”

”Jesus Christ,” Vic, who was standing nearby, couldn’t help but exclaim. All eyes turned to him. Vic held up his hands and shook his head. ”Lu Ke emailed me too, asking about some of the Defense Team’s tactical schemes. I was originally watching a movie with my wife, but after I got the email, I went to my study to review game footage.”

Vic was the defensive coach, so his interpretation and understanding of defense were naturally on another level. Lu Ke wasn’t just analyzing the game from the offense’s perspective; he was also trying to decipher the Defense Team’s tactical arrangements.

”So what you’re saying is, has he actually understood the playbook? I mean, the whole thing!” Jim interrupted the three coaches’ conversation, his eyes wide as he emphasized his question.

For a drafted rookie, they have three months after the draft to read the playbook and integrate into the team. They also have four preseason games to practice specific plays and get used to the game. But for Undrafted Players, that timeline is compressed even further, maybe to less than a third of that.

Joining the team as one of the Undrafted Players, Lu Ke had only six weeks in total to get acclimated. That meant he also had only six weeks to learn the playbook. Even for a genius, even for someone who scored perfectly on the Fonderick test, an NFL playbook absolutely cannot be fully mastered in just six weeks.

Over the course of two games, the range of play-calling was relatively limited, which was unavoidable. Not only were Jim’s play-calls somewhat restricted, but Lu Ke’s on-field adjustments had similar limitations. As the season progressed, the rookie quarterback needed to mature, and the tactical arrangements needed to become more diverse. They had to stay one step ahead and secure wins before other teams completely figured out the San Francisco 49ers’ offense and defense.

”Yes, I think he’s not far off.”

”He’s working on it.”

”At least, he’s working even harder than I am.”

Three men, three different answers, each with its own nuance, but Jim still gave a meaningful nod, indicating he understood. ”Alright then, we’ll have Lu Ke continue as the starting quarterback.”

As always, Jim was an iron-fisted coach. After hearing their opinions, he made a decisive call. There was no hesitation, no second-guessing. It might have seemed rash, even impulsive, but it was the result of careful consideration and weighing the pros and cons.

”Jim, are you sure?” Craig asked, his expression worried.

Such a quick, such a hasty decision. For the past two days, all the members of the coaching staff had been thinking about and discussing this issue, but they had never formally exchanged opinions. And now, after meeting for just a few minutes, Jim had already made the final call?

This...

During this year’s offseason, Alex had first left the team and then returned, signing a one-year, five-million-dollar contract at the behest of the head coach and team manager. In other words, the San Francisco 49ers had just signed a starting quarterback for five million dollars, and now that he was back from injury, they were going to give up on that ”five million” and choose one of the Undrafted Players instead?

It didn’t seem like a smart move. At the very least, Jim should think it over more carefully. That was why Craig had voiced his doubt.

By now, Jim had gradually calmed down, and the flush in his cheeks had returned to normal. It seemed the danger of him exploding had passed. ”Have you guys ever heard of the Washington Redskins’ playbook trick?”

”The Redskins?” Craig frowned, not understanding why Jim was changing the subject now, or what significance this topic held.

”Yeah, I’ve heard of it.” The one who spoke was Kip Kester. The other coaches turned their gazes toward him. Kip explained simply, ”During Rookie Training Camp, the Redskins would pick players they were interested in, give them the camp playbook, and then during interviews, ask them if they’d read the whole thing.”

”Right, I know. We do that too. More than half the teams in the Alliance do,” Craig said with an indifferent shrug. ”What does that have to do with what we’re discussing now?”

Kip’s gaze fell on his colleague. ”The difference is, they tape a hundred-dollar bill to the last page. Of course, every player claims to have read the playbook, but not all of them mention the hundred-dollar bill. Afterward, the Redskins coaches will bring up the hundred dollars and see how the players react.”

It dawned on the coaches. ”It’s an honesty test!” Vic understood at once. ”That’s genius! Whoever came up with that idea is a genius!”

Because football is an incredibly violent sport, players more or less encounter issues off the field: temper control, drinking problems, being party animals, petty theft, and so on. Teams, naturally, hope their players can stay out of trouble and try to select players with excellent moral character as much as possible.

In that light, the Washington Redskins’ little test immediately showed its value.

”So what? Did the Redskins test Lu Ke?” Kip asked curiously.