Chapter 840: Helping Each Other Out
"Lu Ke! Lu Ke is moving fast, the pocket is in danger, danger! The Cardinals' defense suddenly added more rushers, tearing through the pocket with a numerical advantage and rushing toward Lu Ke. Two, no, three defensive players! My God, a pass! Lu Ke released the ball in time at a critical moment, avoiding a sack! The target is..."
"Michael Crabtree!"
"Michael Crabtree is in a one-on-one matchup with number twenty-two, cornerback William Gay! Crabtree has a clear size advantage. He successfully positioned himself, completely shutting out his opponent. Gay tried to make a defensive play, but he had no chance! It's a standard pass over the shoulder into the shadow! Beautiful!"
"Crabtree! Crabtree! He completed the catch! Crabtree successfully completed the catch! This is also one of the most familiar passing routes for the San Francisco 49ers last season. Crabtree was always able to use his size advantage to get in front of a smaller cornerback and, with Lu Ke's precise pass control, completely cut off all of the cornerback's defensive routes, allowing Crabtree to complete the catch easily!"
Lu Ke knew that Crabtree was holding a grudge. In the first quarter, he only threw to Crabtree's direction three times, and he caught one and missed two. In Crabtree's opinion, he must have thought that he was getting too few opportunities and was gradually being squeezed out.
But Lu Ke had to take care of the entire team. He couldn't change the overall strategy for Crabtree's emotions alone. What's more, with Crabtree's current state, even if Lu Ke consciously increased the number of passes to help him adjust his rhythm and state, the results might not be satisfactory.
Lu Ke knew about the short confrontation between Morton and Crabtree during the last break.
Normally, to maintain the team atmosphere, Lu Ke, as the offensive captain, would have to go up and mediate. One would play the bad cop, and the other would play the good cop. But after the verbal conflict a few days ago, Lu Ke knew that whatever he said now, Crabtree wouldn't listen and would instead interpret it in a more ridiculous and incorrect way.
So, what did Lu Ke do?
He wouldn't change his strategy just to throw to Crabtree, but if there was an open spot or an opportunity for Crabtree during a drive, he wouldn't hesitate and would complete the pass with a decisive throw, responding with actions.
To be honest, Lu Ke wanted Crabtree to recover his form more than anyone else. This way, he could relieve some of the burden of choosing passing routes and also ease the pressure on the entire offense.
This passing route was the over-the-shoulder-into-the-shadow pass that Lu Ke and Crabtree were most familiar with. He also consciously raised the arc and reduced the power to ensure that Crabtree could complete the catch in a relatively comfortable position. Compared to continuously gaining yards, it was more important to ensure the success rate. Now, it seemed that his efforts were finally paying off.
Crabtree completed the catch.
"Wait, a yellow flag!"
"The player who committed the foul is... number fifteen, Michael Crabtree. Oh, that's a shame. It's an offensive holding penalty. Let's take a look at the replay. What happened? In a situation where Crabtree only needed to position himself to complete the catch, why did it result in a yellow flag?"
On the field, Crabtree was roaring madly. "You're crazy! My God, you're crazy! How could that be a foul? You tell me, when did I commit a foul? Damn it! Damn it, damn it, damn it! You tell me what happened? You fucking talk! Talk! I need an explanation! How could that catch just now be a foul?"
It was clear that Crabtree's mentality had started to become imbalanced. He had finally made a great catch, but it was nullified by a yellow flag. This was absolutely unacceptable. He walked toward the referee, cursing, his red eyes filled with violent anger. It seemed that he could completely break down at any moment and then spiral out of control.
Lu Ke looked around. Vernon Davis, who usually had the best relationship with Crabtree, was not on the field. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Crabtree raise his right hand and make a money-counting gesture.
At this point, Lu Ke didn't have time to think any further. He didn't care if his appearance would light a fuse. He quickly rushed forward in a few large strides, blocking Crabtree's path to the referee. He didn't use his hands—trying to show a peaceful attitude and avoid any provocation—but used his body as a roadblock to stop Crabtree.
"Calm down! Michael, calm down!"
"Fuck calm!" Crabtree didn't even see who the person was and transferred his anger to them. "You're telling me to calm down now? I clearly didn't commit a foul just now. If it weren't for the referee..." Crabtree raised his right hand again and made the money-counting gesture.
"Shut up!" A brutal and rough shout came from the side. Both Crabtree and Lu Ke turned their heads and saw Jonathan Goodwin and Randy Moss standing in front of them. It was Goodwin who had spoken. "Do your job and shut your mouth. Do you know what you're doing right now?"
There were some things Lu Ke couldn't say and some things Lu Ke couldn't do. Because he was the quarterback, he couldn't actively disrupt the offense's atmosphere and rhythm. Also, because he was a second-year player, his seniority and experience were not enough. In certain special situations, his words and actions could easily be interpreted differently and could even escalate the conflict.
Luckily, Goodwin stepped up and prevented the situation from getting worse.
Under Goodwin's scolding, Crabtree finally calmed down a bit. Then Moss also walked up and put his arm around his shoulder. "The foul is not the point. The point is that next, we will retaliate with an even tougher drive. Understand?"
Lu Ke was a little surprised.
Although Moss was slowly integrating into the team, he himself was a hothead. It was a miracle that he hadn't caused any trouble, let alone maintaining team unity. How could anyone expect him to take on more leadership responsibilities?
Today, Moss took the initiative to step up and talk to Crabtree one-on-one, truly becoming a part of the team. As a wide receiver, and a wide receiver who was definitely going to the Hall of Fame in the future, no one was more suitable to deal with Crabtree's situation than Moss.
As expected, Crabtree was still resentful, but he did calm down a bit and left the referee alone, which finally brought the situation under control.
Then Lu Ke saw Moss turn his head and wink at him with a proud look, as if he was saying, "You owe me one."
Lu Ke couldn't help but laugh.
But... a foul was still a foul. The pass just now was ruled incomplete, and they were penalized five yards.
After a brief moment of chaos, the San Francisco 49ers' offense calmed down again and quickly organized another drive.
Lu Ke made a surprising fake pass and run play. After handing the ball to Gore, he also pretended to be a runner, confusing the defense's attention. This allowed Gore to cut into a relatively weak defensive area. After breaking a tackle, he successfully gained ten yards.
Although they were just penalized five yards, which put them in a second-and-fifteen situation, Gore's run was not enough to get a first down. But the offense had calmed down, refocused, and was ready to attack again.
"Boo! Boo! Boo!"
"Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!"
"Spit! Spit! Spit!"
The San Francisco 49ers' brief chaos was all shown on the big screen through the live broadcast camera because it was a Monday Night Football game. It was still uncertain whether the league would impose additional penalties on Crabtree after the game, but what was certain was that the home fans had no intention of letting it go.
Boos were heard everywhere, and jeers followed one after another. The noise that had just quieted down was injected with new energy, starting a new round of aggressive attacks in a thunderous manner. The entire crowd of fans stood up and raised their middle fingers, expressing their strong dissatisfaction and protest with this action.
The offense was once again in a stormy sea.
"A beautiful short pass! Ted Ginn and Logan Newman's cross-run in the middle distracted the defensive players. In the end, Frank Gore surprisingly came out of nowhere, completed the catch, and successfully got another first down for the team!"
"Ah, a shame, an incomplete pass. Moss's running route was still a half-step slow. He had already successfully positioned himself, but Lu Ke's passing line needed to be one step further. The two players still couldn't connect completely."
"Newman! Newman completed a strong catch under a triple-team! This catch was truly beautiful. It was like snatching a chestnut from the fire. The Cardinals' defensive players were a little stunned."
"Another incomplete pass. The San Francisco 49ers' offensive line is feeling the pressure. Under pressure, Lu Ke was forced to throw the ball out of bounds. Now the Cardinals' defense, who are playing at home, is increasing the intensity."
"Crabtree! Crabtree made a beautiful block, and Moss completed the catch!"
"A run! It's a run! Marcus Lynch! Marcus Lynch is running! The Arizona Cardinals' defense suddenly changed their strategy and was trying to sack the quarterback. They didn't expect to be completely out of sync with the San Francisco 49ers' play. Lu Ke handed the ball to Lynch with a horizontal toss, and he himself drew most of the defense's attention!"
"Open! Lynch found an open lane! This lane is really wide! Lynch! Lynch! Lynch is still running! He broke the last tackle from safety Adrian Wilson! Lynch! Wow, that's a twenty-one-yard super run! Lynch is in the end zone!"
"Touchdown! It's a touchdown! The San Francisco 49ers have scored another touchdown!"
"Unbelievable! Absolutely unbelievable! With the home team's defense continuously improving, the visiting team once again completed a touchdown with a dazzling play!"
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