American Football: King of the Bay Area

”Bambi clearly said we were supposed to cross and switch, to block for each other.”

”One-on-one! One-on-one! Bambi emphasized one-on-one!”

”...We needed to stagger our positions, create a timing delay, and make the first wave of the Defense Line’s rush miss...”

”I was on Hunter, you were on Jenkins. Why did you miss your man? And then come crowd me?”

”Were you even listening to the play call!”

After the incomplete pass, Rupati and Hachar were yelling at each other. But the cheers and shouts from the crowd were incessant. The home fans were once again celebrating their Defense Team’s excellent performance, and the crazy roar completely drowned out all conversation on the field. Rupati and Hachar couldn’t hear each other, or even themselves.

And so, the two men just frantically shouted past each other, each lost in his own words, venting his anger and shifting the blame. Their voices overlapped into a mess of meaningless syllables. Seeing the furious expressions on each other’s faces, their tempers flared even higher.

The first quarter wasn’t even halfway over, and the San Francisco 49ers offense had already been on the field three times. The Offense Line was full of holes. While they hadn’t given up a sack yet, they had allowed two hits on the quarterback. On three other occasions, the pocket had collapsed so quickly it forced the quarterback to throw hastily.

In other words, the Offense Line’s performance today was completely off track, even worse than last week against the Cincinnati Bengals. The fact that they had managed to secure five first downs so far was nothing short of miraculous.

The Philadelphia Eagles and the Cincinnati Bengals were two completely different teams, with different tactical styles and on-field demeanors. However, their strengths and weaknesses were incredibly similar: an offense stronger than its defense, a Defense Line stronger than its secondary, and blitzing tactics that were stronger than their pass coverage.

Facing the Philadelphia Eagles’ targeted blitzing today, the San Francisco 49ers’ Offense Line couldn’t seem to find its rhythm. While they hadn’t given up an early sack like last week, they also hadn’t managed to give Lu Ke a stable, comfortable passing pocket. As a result, the offensive rhythm naturally became choppy and hesitant.

After taking the hit from Jenkins, Lu Ke stumbled back a few steps to absorb the impact, so he wasn’t really affected. His eyes remained locked on the passing route, watching helplessly as Williams missed the reception point. The football fell harmlessly to the turf, resulting in another incomplete pass.

Lu Ke couldn’t help but furrow his brow as a sense of frustration began to bubble up, impossible to suppress.

He knew that during a game, he had to be completely focused. ’Impulsiveness and anxiety are cardinal sins. Overthinking at a critical moment often leads to an inaccurate pass, especially for a quarterback like me who specializes in control.’ But right now, it was hard to keep his emotions in check.

Miscommunication. Since the game started, there had been two instances of miscommunication with his receivers, and two with his offensive linemen. To put it simply, his teammates weren’t correctly grasping his play calls. Each side was executing their own interpretation, leading to breakdowns.

The two incomplete passes and the two hits on him were all due to this.

These were all avoidable mistakes, but the crowd noise at Lincoln Financial Field was just too disruptive. Not only was it impossible to hear, but it was also becoming difficult to concentrate. This led to errors in both communicating and understanding the plays. ’And this isn’t even one of the Alliance’s most famous Devil’s Home Courts,’ he thought. ’Yet the effect is already this powerful. It’s impossible to prepare for.’

In the face of this, frustration was inevitable.

But as the quarterback, Lu Ke took a deep breath, and then another, forcing himself to calm down. That’s when he saw Rupati and Hachar arguing.

It was true that their performance on the blind side in the last game had been terrible. They’d been heavily criticized and were under immense pressure, so it was natural for them to be even more high-strung in today’s game. That explained why they were so agitated. ’But, objectively speaking,’ Lu Ke thought, ’today’s two mistakes weren’t entirely their fault. There were a lot of contributing factors.’

”Stop! Both of you, stop!” Lu Ke strode over and pulled Rupati and Hachar apart. He patted each of them on the shoulder, then knocked his helmet against theirs to get them to focus on him. ”Calm down!” The crowd was busy celebrating, not actively trying to create disruptive noise, so the volume had dropped just enough for his voice to finally carry.

”If anyone gets to be pissed off, it should be me! You two screw up your assignments, and now you’re here scrambling to pass the buck? What’s up with that? Huh?” Lu Ke raised his voice. The two huge linemen immediately lowered their heads and looked away, abashed. ”We need to focus.”

After the first three games, the entire Alliance knew the San Francisco 49ers’ Offense Line was still too young and inconsistent. One moment they played as if divinely inspired, the next they would completely fall apart. This was especially true of the blind side, which had been torn to shreds last week against the Cincinnati Bengals. It was mind-boggling that the 49ers had still managed to win that game.

It was easy to imagine that the Philadelphia Eagles weren’t about to let such a glaring weakness slide today.

”Their Defense Line doesn’t have any standout stars. They’re all solid, dependable role players, so one-on-one coverage is fine. Remember, their blitzes mostly come from the edges, so when you’re blocking, you can spread out a little to help cover each other’s gaps. In terms of raw ability, we’re not outmatched!”

While the noise wasn’t so overwhelming, Lu Ke quickly broke it down for them. Then he shrugged and added in a less-than-certain tone, ”At least, so far.” His delivery made both Rupati and Hachar chuckle lightly. ”You guys get it? I need a solid pocket. Their secondary has holes. We can keep moving the chains!”

On the three offensive drives so far, the Philadelphia Eagles’ Defense Team had been using a ”3-4” formation: three down linemen on the Defense Line and four linebackers behind them.

Generally speaking, the Defense Line is responsible for defending against the run and tearing through the Offense Line up the middle to get a sack—like Geno Atkins last week. Linebackers, on the other hand, are responsible for short-pass coverage and getting around the Offense Line to rush the pocket from the edges to execute a sack—like Von Miller at the Rookie Training Camp.

But today, the Eagles’ defensive front had been constantly swapping roles. They would bring the linebackers up to the line, seemingly leaving the short routes open and baiting a pass. But in reality, the Defensive Ends and Defensive Tackles were swapping responsibilities with the linebackers. The linebackers would play the run while they relied on a surprise blitz from the Defensive End to get the sack.

Cullen Jenkins, the one who just delivered that hit, is a Defensive Tackle, not a linebacker.

On one hand, the Philadelphia Eagles’ Defense Team had been surprisingly effective. On the other hand, the San Francisco 49ers’ Offense Line really hadn’t found its rhythm. So it was no wonder Lu Ke hadn’t been able to get anything going.

But even under these circumstances, they had still picked up five first downs. This proved that the San Francisco 49ers still held a slight edge. Once they made the right adjustments, they could turn the tide.

”Get your heads in the game!” Lu Ke clapped his hands sharply, looking pointedly at Rupati and Hachar. They both nodded, their agitation subsiding for the moment. Then, Lu Ke called the entire offensive unit over. ”We need to be certain on the play call. If you’re not sure, come confirm with me or check with a teammate. We have to eliminate these losses from miscommunication.”

Lu Ke’s gaze swept over each of his teammates. ”Guys, the game just started, and we’ve already made this many mistakes. But even so, we’re still winning the offensive battle. So how about you give yourselves some credit? I’m ready to score some Touchdowns. Who’s with me?”

Lu Ke held out his palm. Mike Rupati was the first to stack his right hand on top, and then everyone else followed suit. Lu Ke looked up, peering through the gaps between his teammates. ”The cheer can wait. Let’s call the play now, while you can still hear my voice.”

The home fans hadn’t started their barrage of noise yet, so Lu Ke’s joke felt a bit sudden, making it hard to stifle a laugh. But before any smiles could fully form, Lu Ke had already finished calling the play.

All the teammates kept their hands stacked. Then Lu Ke yelled, ”On one, shout ’Touchdown’!” He immediately called out, ”One!” and everyone threw their arms into the air, roaring in unison, ”Touchdown!”

By the time the San Francisco 49ers offensive players were set in formation, the home crowd finally reacted. They urged each other on and began to roar again, and the maddening noise returned.

Third and eight.

It was a long-yardage situation, incredibly difficult for a third down. The play-calling options were immediately limited. A pass was far more likely than a run, giving the Defense Team a clearer target and shrinking the offense’s room to maneuver.

The San Francisco 49ers came out in the Shotgun Formation, as expected, looking ready to air it out with two receivers lined up on the left and two on the right.

With Logan Newman lined up on the right, that made it the strong side. But running back Marcus Lynch was positioned on the left, behind the two receivers, creating three potential offensive threats on that side.

This formation put the Philadelphia Eagles’ Defense Team on high alert, causing their entire defensive line to tighten up in response. After three games, no one could afford to underestimate Lu Ke’s execution out of the Shotgun Formation.

Letting out a long breath, Lu Ke narrowed his focus, trying his best to ignore the omnipresent noise and the disorienting feeling of playing on the road. He centered himself and began to carefully read the defense. Every player on the field came into sharp focus, his mind processing at high speed. Then, Lu Ke called for the snap!

”Hike!”