Chapter 720: Untamable
"Calm down! All of you, calm the hell down!"
Logan and Vernon finally pulled Moss back, preventing him from colliding with the referee and getting a bigger penalty. But Moss was still cursing and complaining, which led to some unpleasant words between him and his teammates.
Turning his head, Moss saw a furious Lu Ke. On that young and immature face, there was an unbelievable ferocity. "Shut up!"
"What did you say? You little straw-headed kid, dare to say that again? I'll wring your head off!" Moss was a hot-tempered person who was not afraid of a head-on confrontation. "When I was playing ball, you were still playing with your little bird! Damn it!"
"I told you to shut up!" Lu Ke didn't compromise or back down. He crashed into Moss head-on. Just as Moss was about to lose control, Lu Ke didn't back down. Instead, he took another step forward and crashed into him. "What was that running route just now? I said beforehand that this was a pass of about 30 yards. Why did you run to over 40 yards?"
Moss's eyes widened, and for a moment, he couldn't keep up the momentum.
"The running route and the running area were both off, and that's not even the worst of it. When you were trying to complete the catch, you actively pushed the defender and caused a foul. I could see it even from here, and you're still arguing with the referee? Do you think the yards we've been penalized are not enough?" Lu Ke's words came out non-stop.
"You!"
"Football is a team sport, not a personal show. You've been in the league for so many years. If you still don't understand this simple truth and need a kid who doesn't know anything like me to teach you, then you can get out. Your comeback is just a clown in a circus, trying to get some applause by putting on a spectacle. But I'm telling you now, we're here to win games, not to perform."
"Damn it! Get lost!"
"Either follow the play, or get off the field!"
Lu Ke didn't give Moss any room to argue and gave him a final ultimatum on the spot.
Moss was stunned for a moment. He pushed Lu Ke away fiercely without saying a word, turned around, and left the field, angrily throwing his helmet on the ground to vent his dissatisfaction.
Even in the studio, Teddy had already noticed this detail. "It seems that our second-year quarterback and the top candidate for the greatest wide receiver in history, Randy Moss, are still not working well together."
Lu Ke was not blinded by anger. He knew exactly what he was doing.
First, the entire team was a little tense, not just him, but his other teammates as well. It was the first game of the new season, and everyone was adjusting their state. After finally finding their rhythm after getting back on the field, Moss's impulsiveness was disrupting their own plan.
Second, Moss's irrational behavior had to be stopped. The foul just now was a legitimate penalty. Lu Ke had even confirmed it with Jim Harbaugh and got a positive answer. Therefore, Moss's irrationality could lead to more hidden dangers.
Third, Moss was the biggest star on the entire team and an untamable problem child. Even Harbaugh might not be able to control him. Once his temper flared up, he would inevitably become an unpredictable factor in the entire locker room. This situation was far more serious than last year's locker room problems.
Fourth, Lu Ke's own temper was also a little hot.
If Lu Ke had been in the league for ten years, he might have had a better way to solve the problem, or he would have had more prestige and authority to solve the problem.
The problem now was that Lu Ke was only a second-year player and an Asian player. The lack of experience and a track record, as well as the lack of authority and status, forced him to choose a tough approach to deal with the problem at a crucial moment.
Maybe this wasn't the best way, but it was the best way Lu Ke could think of at that moment.
After giving the ultimatum, Lu Ke himself was also slightly trembling. Randy Moss was the biggest star Lu Ke had ever worked with among all the players. Just imagine him yelling at Peyton Manning, "Your play was wrong just now." Even just a simulation in his mind would make his knees feel weak and shaky.
But he had no way out. As the team's on-field captain, this was his responsibility.
Lu Ke could feel the worried looks around him. Logan stood firmly by Lu Ke's side to support him. Lupati, Goodwin, Vernon, and the others all looked at him with concern. Everyone couldn't believe that Bambi would have a head-on conflict with Moss. It was truly unbelievable.
"All of you, focus!" Lu Ke clapped his hands hard, drawing everyone's attention. "We need to re-organize the play now."
In the studio, Teddy and Kirk were re-watching the last drive.
Facing a first-and-10 situation, the San Francisco 49ers set up a basic "two-by-two" formation. After the snap, the two receivers on the left and the two receivers on the right all sprinted forward. One short-pass area, two mid-pass areas, and one long-pass area were all intertwined, showing the multi-route running style that had dominated the league last season for the first time in this game.
Not only that, but Gore used his old trick again. After crossing through the gap in the middle of the offensive line, he made a catching motion in the central short-pass area, adding another receiving option and completely disrupting all of the Green Bay Packers' plans. Even Matthews had to give up his plan to sack the quarterback and go back to help with the coverage.
The offensive line once again performed outstandingly. There was no pressure on the left side. Alex Boone on the right side had a slight blocking issue and was losing ground, but he still held on to the pass rusher and didn't let the pocket completely collapse. This gave Lu Ke ample time to observe and pass.
Lu Ke chose the long pass route. In his bones, Lu Ke was still a quarterback who dared to take big risks.
This time, the target was Randy Moss.
Because of the unpredictable running routes, Moss had successfully created a one-on-one matchup with the cornerback, Tramon. The problem was here. Moss's running route was wrong and didn't follow Lu Ke's play. He completely missed Lu Ke's intended landing spot, running about 10 yards too far.
It was a position where he couldn't possibly make a catch.
So, Moss tried to create a foul to draw a yellow flag, allowing the offense to continue the drive. Unfortunately, Tramon didn't fall for it. Instead, Moss himself committed a foul: illegal offensive player pushing.
This was an obvious situation. The only part of the drive that went wrong was Moss. If it was just that, it would have been fine. After all, it was the first game of the regular season, and all the teamwork was still in the adjustment period. Mistakes were inevitable. But Moss's hot temper lost control, which led to a series of subsequent chaos.
"Randy Moss, Randy Moss, Randy Moss. Success is because of him, and failure is also because of him. Now I'm a little worried. Will Moss's comeback become the weakest link in the San Francisco 49ers' offense? Like a bomb that you don't know when it's going to explode," Teddy said in a summary, expressing the concerns of every analyst and commentator.
Kirk, who was sitting next to him, said lightly, "Isn't it exploding all the time?"
Because of Moss's foul, the San Francisco 49ers were penalized 10 yards and were back at their own 41-yard line.
To make things worse, they had to face a super-long first-and-20.
This time, the Green Bay Packers' defense set up a strange formation:
In the first line, there were three defensive linemen, plus Matthews on the left side. In the second line, there were three linebackers, their positions completely corresponding to the three defensive linemen. In the third line, two cornerbacks were roaming on the outside near the sidelines. Their feet were sometimes moving forward and sometimes moving backward. In the center, a safety was constantly observing and moving.
Finally, in the fourth line, another safety was covering the backfield.
Moreover, Charles Woodson had moved up his position. Morgan Burnett was left in the backfield, while Woodson came to a position about 10 to 15 yards from the offensive line, seeming ready to compress the defensive space or even make an interception.
In response, the San Francisco 49ers had a basic formation: a two-by-two, still the old and classic two-by-two.
In the center were five offensive linemen. On the left side were Crabtree and Vernon. On the right side were Ginn and Logan. Lu Ke stood in the shotgun formation, and Marcus, who was rotating as the running back, was not standing parallel but was standing four yards behind Lu Ke.
The entire formation was standard. The only change was that the two tight ends, Vernon and Logan, who were on either side of the offensive line, were standing a little more to the inside, blocking the slot.
Facing the first-and-20 predicament, the Green Bay Packers' defense had a slight advantage.
"Hut!"
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Almost at the same time as Lu Ke announced the snap, Matthews immediately started, and the powerful force that burst out created a roaring wind that fiercely hit his ears. His eyes were locked on his matchup, Joe Staley. This time, Matthews's feet were completely on the ground, and his power was at its peak, ready to destroy Staley.
It wasn't just Matthews.
The Green Bay Packers' front-line defense came out in full force. Three defensive linemen, plus the outside linebacker Matthews and two inside linebackers, a total of six players, crisscrossed and switched positions, messing up the offensive line's matchups. They advanced with a forceful and brutal momentum, trying to tear open the pocket.
Because they knew that facing a first-and-20, the San Francisco 49ers were very likely to choose a passing play. This meant that they could reduce the power of the run defense and rush the offensive line more aggressively and fiercely. The perfect scenario would be to sack the quarterback before the pass was released.
Wait, it's not Staley. It's Vernon Davis and Joe Staley working together?
Clay Matthews cried out that something was wrong!
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