The answer is: impossible.
Facing a "24-34" score, the St. Louis Rams, who had been fighting hard in the second half, still didn't give up. After two touchdowns in the third quarter, they scored another touchdown and a field goal in the fourth. Their entire offense had come to life, and Bradford's arm was hot again.
But not everyone can be a savior.
When Bradford took the field again, he ended his all-or-nothing drive with an interception, and the game came to an abrupt halt.
According to the rules, the offensive quarterback can choose to take a knee, giving up a down and running forty seconds off the clock. In other words, with a lead and the ball in the final minutes, after the 49ers intercepted, they only had to take a knee to run out the remaining time.
Once Bradford threw the interception, the game was essentially over.
The Rams also realized this. After Alex came back on the field, he took a knee just once. Then, all the players from both teams swarmed onto the field, hugging and congratulating each other, a collective release of the season's burdens. For the Rams, the 2011 season had officially ended.
The final score was "24-34."
The Rams' loss made them one of the top contenders for the first overall pick, though the exact positioning still had to be calculated. The other contender was the Indianapolis Colts, who had lost Peyton Manning for the season. The 49ers' win secured them the number two seed in the NFC.
More importantly, the 2011 regular season officially came to a close. To ensure fairness, all sixteen games in the final week of the regular season were played simultaneously, with no night games. With the end of this game, the long regular season officially concluded.
Standing on the sidelines, Lu Ke let out a long, deep breath. His heart was full, a mix of emotions swirling inside him.
He felt a slight regret that this wasn't a home game, so he wouldn't get to see the sea of red fans. But his first regular season as a professional was over. He had not only started all sixteen games but also led his team to thirteen wins. Even now, it all felt unbelievable.
It was an unexpected start and an unexpected end, but all in all, it was a wonderful season that was now deeply etched in his mind.
This flood of emotions was fleeting, because he knew that the road ahead was long, and an even brighter future was waiting for him. The regular season was over, and the playoffs were right around the corner, leaving no time to rest. For the twelve teams that made the playoffs, the real battles were just beginning!
However, before the official playoff preparations began, they could take a moment, just for today, to breathe and enjoy the victory and the season, freely and without a care.
"Bambi! Bambi!"
Aldon Smith was the first to rush over, giving Lu Ke a big hug. He shook Lu Ke's shoulders, shouting, "We won! My God! We won again! Haha!" His hearty laughter rumbled in his chest. Getting such an amazing result in his rookie season was truly a blessing.
At that moment, Logan and Marcus also came over, happily shouting, "We did it! We did it!"
Six months ago, Lu Ke joined the 49ers as an undrafted rookie through a tryout. The three musketeers from UCLA were reunited. Back then, the three young men were full of expectations for their rookie season, like a pink bubble, with all sorts of incredible scenarios popping into their heads.
Six months later, the three musketeers had taken the first solid step toward their dreams, leading their team back to the playoffs for the first time in eight years and securing the number two seed in the NFC. Everything was so perfect it felt like a Hollywood fairy tale, lacking a sense of reality.
Only when their eyes met could they truly believe it: a 13-3 season, it was actually happening.
"We did it!" Lu Ke couldn't help but join in the shouting, raising his hands high and jumping for joy, simply enjoying the beauty and happiness of the moment. After seventeen hard weeks, he could finally let go and release all the pressure.
"Bambi!" In the midst of the commotion, someone clapped Lu Ke hard on the shoulder.
He turned to see Patrick Willis. The usually calm and composed Willis was winking and giving him exaggerated gestures, almost as if he were having a facial spasm. Following Willis's gaze, Lu Ke immediately knew what he meant. He then called over Logan and Marcus, and the group quickly rushed over.
Lu Ke and Willis teamed up to lift the half-man-tall Gatorade bucket. Logan and Marcus were in charge of clearing the way, telling their teammates to make room. Soon, all the teammates' eyes were on Jim Harbaugh. And so was the Gatorade.
The orange liquid came pouring down, so ferociously that it knocked Harbaugh's baseball cap off his head.
"Shoot!" Harbaugh exclaimed, not even having time to escape before he was completely soaked.
After the entire bucket of Gatorade was dumped on him, Harbaugh was covered in a sticky, orange liquid, looking like a mutated snot monster. All the players and coaches burst into laughter. Harbaugh himself looked helpless, but the more he thought about it, the funnier it became. He looked at his offensive and defensive captains and shook his head repeatedly.
"Jim!" Craig Roman warned.
But as Harbaugh reflexively turned his head, he was hit with another small bucket of Gatorade, a second surprise attack that left him even more a mess. He turned to see David Akers holding a half-sized Gatorade bottle, all smiles and looking delighted.
The special teams captain was there now, too. The team was complete.
Jim stood in place, let out a couple of dry "ha's," then looked around. He turned to Lu Ke and jokingly threatened, "You're next."
Lu Ke held his hands up and made an exaggerated, dramatic motion, as if to say, "Me? Why me? I'm so innocent and kind. How could it be me? How could you be so heartless?" It was a dramatic performance, and Aldon Smith, standing next to him, began to mimic Lu Ke's gestures.
Then, without warning, Logan and Marcus snuck up behind Aldon. They suddenly attacked, tackling him and tying him up like wrestlers. When the other players saw this, they swarmed him like ants to honey, tickling him until Aldon was begging for mercy.
The scene looked like a classic Charlie Chaplin silent film. There was no dialogue, but it was hilarious.
Even though it was an away game, with the opposing team's fans watching, and the playoffs were still ahead, after a long and intense seventeen-week season, they needed a moment to release and celebrate, to temporarily shed the pressure before tightening their focus and running toward the playoffs.
So, the entire team, even the staff, celebrated wildly, enjoying this short moment of relaxation and joy.
When Lu Ke stood in front of the reporters, he was still all smiles, sweating, and his cheeks were flushed. The atmosphere around him radiated pure happiness.
To the first official question about his thoughts on the season ending, Lu Ke's answer was refreshingly simple: "Unfortunately, it's not the end yet. But fortunately, it's not the end yet." It was a simple and clever double entendre.
The reporter then continued to ask Lu Ke about how it felt to complete his rookie season as a starting quarterback.
Lu Ke candidly said, "It was an unexpected start. I don't think anyone, besides me, expected it to begin this way." His self-deprecating humor always lightened the mood. "But now that the regular season is over, I hope it was a beautiful journey, because I personally really enjoyed it."
After a flurry of questions, Lu Ke thought the post-game interview would end on a positive note, but then Harry Waynes once again "stepped up." The reporter was relentlessly pursuing Lu Ke, seemingly determined to get a juicy scoop before giving up.
"In today's game, the first half was all as expected. But in the second half, after Alex Smith took over at quarterback, the team began to face one dangerous situation after another. Do you have any thoughts on this?"
Noticing Lu Ke's slightly narrowed eyes, Harry could sense the danger, but he wasn't afraid. He added, "Many people think that when you're on the field, you put pressure on the defense, but when you're not, the situation becomes fragile. So, what are your thoughts on this? And what do you think of Alex's performance?"
It was a blatant provocation.
It was a cunning and vicious trap. He openly praised Lu Ke but then used it as a means to attack Alex. It was clear that he was trying to stir up trouble between Lu Ke and Alex.
It's a well-known fact that a starting quarterback and a backup aren't naturally friends—Scott Tolzien is a special case. There's an inherent competition between them. But conflicts between a starter and a backup can easily become a destabilizing factor for a team. The locker room atmosphere in the first half of the 49ers' season was a perfect example.
Today, Harry was definitely prepared.
And Harry wasn't alone. Other reporters also started asking follow-up questions.
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