Chapter 728: Son of the Storm
The pocket was broken.
The San Francisco 49ers' entire offensive line had completely fallen apart. In the high-tempo offense, their physical and mental strength had just reached a breaking point. Perhaps it was just a moment to catch their breath, but the Green Bay Packers acutely increased their defensive pressure. With seven players charging against five, they used their minds against the unprepared, and the quarterback blitz strategy worked immediately.
The offensive line still didn't give up, gritting their teeth and using their remaining strength to push back, trying to stop the blitz as much as possible.
But they had already lost the initiative. What's more, the opponent had an insurmountable numerical advantage.
Lu Ke barely avoided Matthews's tackle, but before he could pull his legs away, outside linebacker Erik Walden and defensive end Mike Neal appeared on his right. Like two dark figures, they rapidly grew in his eyes and charged down.
Second second.
Lu Ke's body suddenly crouched down, as if a child was playing hide-and-seek, dodging under the four tackling arms. But there was a slight difference—
It wasn't his upper body moving and then his lower body following; it was his lower body's movement pulling his upper body to sway.
Maintaining a half-squatting posture, Lu Ke imitated a crab's walk, moving sideways with a series of small steps. In this high-speed confrontation, he incredibly showed the flexibility and resilience of his body. His upper body's reaction was a half-beat slower. In the end, he could only lean back, maintaining a wide-angle posture, and completed a smooth and nimble lateral movement, narrowly avoiding the two players' hands.
This scene looked like a replay of "The Matrix's" bullet time. Lu Ke, with a backward-leaning sideways movement, completed an unbelievable dodge.
This wasn't a game; it was a stunt. Everyone was dumbfounded, not daring to believe their eyes. But it was all too beautiful. In the clash of strength and speed, the beauty of flexibility was displayed. The two contradictory sensations collided, creating a breathtaking moment.
The entire stadium held its breath.
Third second.
The results of long-term yoga training were finally revealed at this moment. Just relying on his "Absolute Footwork," he would have been completely helpless in the face of the previous situation. The reaction time was too short, and the crisis was too crowded, leaving only a glimmer of hope. It was impossible to make an effective footwork move. But in the end, Lu Ke still did it, like a juggler.
Now, Lu Ke felt every muscle in his body was on the verge of exploding. His chest, abdomen, back, waist, thighs, calves... all were in agony. After escaping, he stumbled forward, watching the green turf rapidly enlarge in his eyes.
Since using the "Absolute Footwork" special skill, Lu Ke had never been so clumsy. This showed how determined and overwhelming the Green Bay Packers' rush was.
But now was not the time for reflection.
The hot air trapped in his chest was bubbling. He clumsily propped himself up with his left hand on the ground, using the recoil to straighten his upper body. But his feet were gradually losing control. They weren't messy, but they lacked power. This made it impossible for Lu Ke to stand up completely, let alone to look around carefully.
He could only trust his instincts.
Originally, this should have been a short-pass play, executing the high-tempo short pass to the end, but now the play was clearly completely destroyed. Lu Ke only had time to quickly scan the layout on the right side. The options left for him were very limited.
So, he pulled his arm back in a large circle, almost like a "moon from the bottom of the sea" move. At the lowest point, his forearm whipped forward like a horse's tail, swinging upward from the bottom. He flicked his wrist with high frequency, giving a powerful throw, and the football quickly rose into the air with an irregular spin.
A long pass!
Lu Ke chose a long pass!
In a split second, Lu Ke still chose his most important weapon. This was not the best time for a long pass, but now Lu Ke had no other choice. He only glimpsed a pass opportunity the size of a crack, and it was fleeting. Without any hesitation, he used his perfect long-pass accuracy, which showed its true power at this moment.
The moment the football left his hand, Lu Ke lost his balance.
He stumbled and fell to the ground, sliding heavily. The powerful inertia was ravaging every muscle in his body. He finally let out the long-held breath of hot oxygen from his chest, but his eyes were fixed on the football's flight path. Could he rise from the dead?
Ted Ginn and Logan Newman were on the right side.
After the snap, both of them followed the planned route and moved quickly in the short-pass area. But after only a few steps, their eyes caught the chaos in the pocket. The entire blitz and breakdown happened so fast that there was no time to react. Lu Ke was already in a desperate situation.
Both Ginn and Logan slowed their steps. All signs pointed to a sack.
But a miracle happened!
When Matthews missed the sack, Ginn and Logan caught each other's positions with their peripheral vision and both started a second burst. No communication was needed, no plan was necessary, not even a glance. After a whole season of teamwork, their running instincts and route synchronization had reached a new level.
What's more, they trained together during the offseason.
Both of them ran in a straight line, slowly, slowly picking up speed. The reason they didn't immediately go full out was that they had to constantly watch Lu Ke's situation to ensure the passing connection between them wasn't cut off. Only in this way could they barely maintain a glimmer of hope.
The Green Bay Packers' defense had all come out. There were only two cornerbacks and two safeties left in the secondary. The two players defending this side were cornerback Tramon Williams and safety Charles Woodson. This meant that the offense and defense were in a "two vs. two" situation.
"Ted! Ted!"
Without any warning, Logan started shouting loudly. No extra words were needed. Ginn's speed immediately exploded. Williams, who was covering Ginn one-on-one, immediately started to pick up speed as well, but Logan suddenly cut inside, using his shoulder to hit Williams and successfully completing a beautiful block.
Because Logan noticed the arc of Lu Ke's throw, it was a long pass, at least a 25-yard pass. Whether it was aimed directly at the end zone still needed to be seen from the peak of the football's parabola. This also meant that Ginn, who was known for his speed, would be a better receiving option than Logan.
Accelerate.
This was the only thought in Ginn's mind. His acceleration immediately reached its maximum.
The injury and regret from that strong hit in last season's NFC Championship Game were still vivid and clear. Ginn didn't know if he could still have a strong performance like last season, and he didn't know if he would have another chance to stand on the NFC Championship stage. He didn't even know if his career could continue.
But he knew one thing clearly: he wanted to play, he craved to play, and he loved to play! He wanted to stand on this stage again. He wanted to fly again.
This was the first time in this game that Ginn was the target of a pass.
But in his mind, Ginn was in a state of complete serenity. There was no thought, no worry, just complete concentration on running. The corner of his eye was constantly watching Woodson's defensive position.
He was a seasoned safety. He didn't rush forward easily. Instead, he kept adjusting his feet and position, quietly closing the distance between them while carefully observing the football's trajectory to predict the landing spot. At the same time, he was also watching the receiver's route, like a venomous snake, never making a rash move. Once he struck, it would be a fatal blow.
Ginn's feet had already crossed the 20-yard line in the blink of an eye. The distance between him and Woodson had come down to a single step.
Speed up, speed up again.
Ginn gritted his teeth and pushed his speed to the limit. A continuous stream of energy burst from his body. He could even clearly feel the trace of the wind flowing under his legs, like a babbling stream rushing forward. His steps started to become lighter and lighter. "Whoosh, whoosh," the wind roared in his ears. It seemed that with just a slight tip of his toes, he could fly away with the wind.
This was his moment.
Since his injury, he had never run so freely, so uninhibited, so happily. But at this moment, he had completely forgotten all his injuries and troubles. He was just purely running. His bones and muscles made a "pop" sound. In a state of self-forgetfulness, Ginn actually began to accelerate for the third time. Adrenaline was gushing out.
Then, all the spectators could see a bizarre and shocking sight:
Woodson got into position. Woodson and Ginn ran side by side. Ginn was a half-step ahead. Ginn was a full step ahead.
His absolute speed advantage completely defeated Woodson's advantage of getting into position early. He forced a pass without even completing his positioning, creating a mismatch again!
Everything happened in a flash of lightning. By the time Woodson realized it, his rhythm was a quarter of a beat slow. He tried to push Ginn with his hands to disrupt his rhythm and balance, but he only managed to hit Ginn's shoulder with a weak pat. Before he could even apply force, he watched his hand slip away—
Ginn had pulled away again!
From defense to a face-off to a mismatch, this scene was like a runner overtaking another in the final moments of a 100-meter dash. It was clear and obvious, right in front of everyone's eyes. Adrenaline exploded instantly.
At this moment, he was the son of the storm!
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