Chapter 723: A Tit-for-Tat
"Ah!"
Lu Ke finally couldn't hold it in. He clenched his fists and roared with abandon. The endless shouts erupted from the depths of his heart, wave after wave. All the tension, all the suppression, all the frustration could finally be released at this moment. It was as if he had finally broken free from the shackles on his hands and feet and rediscovered himself.
This was their true strength! This was their proper level! This was the style they possessed!
In the last few drives, he broke through Matthews once and Woodson twice. In the head-on clash against the opponent's tight defense, Lu Ke used his wisdom and play calls to successfully tear open a gap, truly showcasing the offensive power that dominated the league last season.
The release and eruption after breaking through the restraints were like a volcanic eruption. All the accumulated power instantly gushed out. It seemed that even his blood began to boil and bubble, reminding Lu Ke, little by little, how much he loved the game, how much he yearned for the game—the confrontations, the duels, the collisions, the passes... and the touchdowns!
It wasn't until this moment that the familiar Lu Ke truly woke up.
"This is what I'm talking about! Damn it, this is what I'm talking about!" Lu Ke hugged Logan, who was running toward him, and heavily patted his helmet, not holding back his praise. All his teammates on the offense swarmed over, celebrating the successful touchdown together.
Perhaps for the long season, this was just the beginning of a touchdown. But for this game, this touchdown truly broke the initial sluggishness and suppression, especially after an interception. It quickly boosted morale and was very likely to become the turning point of this away game.
At this moment, Lu Ke was even more excited than when he completed his first long pass for a touchdown last year.
The celebration didn't last too long. From the field to the sidelines, the teammates from the offense and special teams congratulated each other with high-fives.
Undrafted rookie running back Jewel Hampton, who was about to go on the field as a special teams player, also scurried over. He and Lu Ke high-fived each other, shouting "Nice play," truly integrating into the team's atmosphere. Then, with a brilliant smile on his face, he followed his other teammates onto the field to prepare for the extra point kick.
Under the watchful eyes of 80,000 home fans, David Akers was unfazed. He steadily kicked the extra point, successfully tying the score for the visiting team:
"7-7."
"Offense! Offense! Offense!"
Facing the visiting team's beautiful touchdown, the home fans were still unfazed, because they had one of the top offenses in the league and one of the best quarterbacks. The next part was their strength. In a shootout, they were not afraid of any opponent.
But after being on the field for less than 50 seconds, the commentators and the live audience all gasped in unison, "Sack!"
No one had expected that after Aaron Rodgers came on the field, he would be hit with a brutal sack on his first-and-10 play. This was simply not normal.
During the offseason, the San Francisco 49ers had made some small adjustments to their offensive line, which had shown initial results in the previous drives. Further effectiveness would need to be tested throughout the long season. Similarly, they also made adjustments to their defense, and the changes were relatively obvious.
Last season, the San Francisco 49ers' defense used a "4-3" formation—four defensive linemen and three linebackers.
But throughout the season, despite having good stats and ranking third in the league overall, the problem of being soft at key moments was exposed.
First, the front line didn't apply enough pressure. Their ability to stop the run was commendable, but their numbers for sacking the quarterback were not satisfactory. Second, after the front-line defense lacked strength, the weakness of the secondary defense was further magnified, especially the matchups between cornerbacks and wide receivers, who were often beaten by their opponents.
This was also the case in the two playoff games. Against the New Orleans Saints, there were repeated problems in the short-pass area, which made Drew Brees's method of catching up on the score incredibly clear and effective. Against the New York Giants, the lapse in overtime was clearly the result of a large-scale breakdown in the coordinated defense between the cornerbacks and safeties.
So, this season, the San Francisco 49ers' defense learned from their mistakes. After detailed discussions, they significantly changed their defensive formation to a "3-4" formation, with three defensive linemen and four linebackers—the same as the Green Bay Packers.
"3-4" and "4-3" are two defensive formations, each with its own pros and cons. They have both been successful in the hands of different coaches. Ultimately, it all comes down to adjusting and coaching based on the team's player configuration and coaching style. This was exactly what Jim Harbaugh was doing.
On the defensive line, Harbaugh used veteran Isaac Sopoaga. Last year, he was a backup player who played as a nose tackle in college and converted to a defensive tackle after entering the league. He had once gone to Lu Ke's home with Adam Snyder for a party, but Sopoaga was "kicked out" to a party next door while Snyder had a tactical meeting.
This year, Snyder left, and Sopoaga moved into the starting lineup and returned to his most familiar nose tackle position.
Additionally, the defensive ends were handled by Ray McDonald and Justin Smith. Both players were very good at breaking through and sacking. The latter's consecutive three Pro Bowl selections proved his strength. If Justin hadn't been injured in the game against the New York Giants, the overtime situation might have been different.
In the linebacker corps, Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman were the inside linebackers, both of whom were Pro Bowl members last year. Ahmad Brooks and Aldon Smith were the outside linebackers. This was a new combination, and especially with Aldon as a first-round rookie from last year, his inclusion in the starting lineup this year showed that Harbaugh had high hopes for him.
After changing the defensive front formation, the entire aggressive nature of the San Francisco 49ers' defense was highlighted.
The last defensive play was a perfect example.
After the snap, Sopoaga held his ground against the center's rush and used his hands to interfere with the two offensive guards. McDonald and Justin took the opportunity to move to the outside, intentionally creating a gap for the two offensive guards, and then they matched up with the offensive tackles on the outermost sides of the offensive line.
Everything happened in an instant. The two offensive guards didn't have time to adjust their rhythm, and the entire offensive line had already been spread out.
At the same time, Willis and Bowman, the two inside linebackers, constantly moved to cover the short-pass area, but their eyes were fixed on the running back's running route, cutting off all possibilities in the middle short-pass area. This also left space for Aldon and Brooks to blitz.
The two outside linebackers simultaneously ran around the offensive line. With the offensive tackles already controlled, Aldon and Brooks broke through the pocket with almost no effort. Although the offensive guards and offensive tackles managed to break off and try to stop Aldon and Brooks at the last moment, it was already too late.
In less than two seconds, the pocket had been broken.
Aaron Rodgers, in a crisis, tried to use his feet to run into an open area. As he rushed to the right, he saw Brooks pouncing toward him. His feet were forced to move to the left, and then Aldon, on the blind side, tackled him squarely. Before he could struggle or resist, Rodgers was sacked.
It was a loss of nine yards.
After the offense, the San Francisco 49ers' defense also began to speed up. The results of the offseason training were beginning to show.
Second-and-19.
Rodgers handed the ball to running back Alex Green, but Green couldn't find a gap to advance.
Facing the San Francisco 49ers, who had the second-best run defense in the league last season, Green was helpless. Willis and Bowman teamed up to stop Green, only allowing him to advance two yards. As a result, the Green Bay Packers were immediately in a long third-down situation.
Third-and-17.
After the snap, Rodgers used his mobility to create a gap. Amidst the flurry of the 49ers' defense, he found a passing lane and powerfully sent the football out like a bullet, crossing over the offensive and defensive lines and finding Craig Jennings, who had no one guarding him!
Jennings's footwork was stable as he made a catching gesture. Just when everyone thought this 15-yard pass would undoubtedly be completed, the 49ers' number 38 safety, Dashon Goldson, appeared!
Goldson never lost his focus and was locked on to Jennings. But at the crucial moment, he failed to get into position, allowing Jennings to escape. With a quick horizontal cut, Jennings ran into an open area, but Goldson still didn't give up. He ran quickly from left to right, making two or three small quick adjustments, and then his calves powered up like a jackrabbit, pushing off the ground hard.
In an instant, his entire body flew horizontally and leaped. His body was stretched to the limit, like a swordfish gliding at the bottom of the sea, and he appeared precisely in the path of the bullet pass.
Originally, Goldson only wanted to break up the pass, but the moment his hands touched the football, his fingertips gently retracted inward. His palms could feel a powerful force vibrating violently, like the Golden Snitch in the "Harry Potter" Quidditch game. By reflex, Goldson clenched his fingertips tightly, tighter, and even tighter!
Then, he fell heavily to the ground, kicking up a patch of grass. Out of the corner of his eye, Goldson could see Jennings's shocked, frozen posture, as if he hadn't reacted at all.
He knew he had succeeded!
The cheers and shouts that were about to erupt in Lambeau Field instantly froze in their throats. All eyes were stunned.
An interception?
Was this actually an interception? What was going on? How was that possible?
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