Chapter 1030: The Legion of Boom
People, people, people.
Every corner of his vision was packed with people, but for Crabtree, this was the part he was most familiar with and best at: using his physical strength to create space in a dense crowd and continue to move forward. He didn't have Randy Moss's agility and grace, or Ted Ginn's lightness and speed, but he had his own unique advantage.
Harbaugh had Crabtree try out as a returner, partly because the team was short on receiving players, and partly to help Crabtree get back into form through more contact. He had already recovered a lot in the last game.
Now, Crabtree was not in a hurry, nor did he give up easily. He continued to use small steps to look for an opening in the crowd. Although there were many opposing players, there were also many of his own.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of white jerseys. Instinctively, he shifted to the right to barely avoid them. But then he saw a wall of two white jerseys appear on the right. It was too late to stop, so he simply charged forward.
He wasn't trying to break through the opponent, but rather to prevent them from tackling him.
Then he used the recoil to push forward to the left. Two red jerseys had just broken through the opposing players, creating a small channel. He charged forward without hesitation, running into a white jersey, but because his center of gravity was more solid, he pushed the opponent away, and a five-yard gain appeared in front of him.
He stumbled forward like this, gaining three yards here and two yards there, and then an opening of five or ten yards appeared. Crabtree relentlessly continued to push forward, stumbling for nearly thirty yards before he was tripped up at his own 47-yard line, ending his kickoff return.
The entire Candlestick Park erupted, and the chant of "Fight! Forever!" echoed throughout the stadium.
Crabtree clenched his fists and let out a wild roar. It wasn't to celebrate, but to motivate himself. He needed to get his energy back, he needed to inspire the team, he needed to fight, and reawaken the beast deep inside him. He would give his all on every play, on every opportunity.
"It's clear that the home team, the San Francisco 49ers, are ready. Even though the weather is a bit colder than expected, they are still making their opponents feel their tenacity and perseverance. This game is off to an exciting start!"
When Crabtree came off the field, his offensive teammates all high-fived him. Since he had just returned the kickoff and had a good return, he needed a moment to catch his breath on the first offensive play.
Lu Ke also high-fived Crabtree and then jogged onto the field. To the cheers of "Offense! Clap, clap!" from the crowd, he officially began the Divisional Round journey.
Lu Ke didn't immediately huddle his teammates. As he walked onto the field and before the snap, he quickly scanned the Seattle Seahawks' defensive lineup and made a judgment.
The two teams were old rivals. After two matchups in a single season, they knew each other's plays and form inside and out. But now that it was the playoffs, it meant everything was starting over. Any small mistake could end their season. The most important thing now was to forget their undefeated season record and not take victory for granted—even though it wasn't easy.
Over the past two seasons, the San Francisco 49ers had defeated the Seattle Seahawks twice in a row and had even set an incredible record of a 35-point minimum Score. It seemed that every time he faced the Seahawks' defense, Lu Ke could find a way. But in reality, Lu Ke knew better than anyone how strong the Seattle Seahawks' defense was. This season, they had grown into one of the top defenses in the league.
In their Week 3 game against the Green Bay Packers, even though a controversial call at the last minute caused the Packers to lose the game and changed the course of their season, it's undeniable that the Seahawks completely shut down the Packers' running game and sacked a top-form Aaron Rodgers eight times. No one could underestimate Rodgers, who has incredible pocket presence.
In their Week 6 game against the New England Patriots, Tom Brady didn't take the Seahawks seriously before the game, even joking on social media that the team was "too young," which led to a war of words. But during the game, Brady was intercepted twice by the Seahawks' dynamic duo of Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas, and the Patriots lost the game after having a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter.
After the game, there was a shocking scene that spread throughout the league. Sherman, who had been trading insults with Brady on social media, didn't let up. He walked directly up to Brady and, with the cameras on him, yelled, "You mad, bro?" Brady almost got into a physical altercation with Sherman.
At the end of the season, the Seattle Seahawks' defense was ranked first in the league. The strength of their secondary was unanimously praised by everyone in and outside the league, and they even earned a name for themselves!
Throughout history, there have been countless great groups like the "Million Dollar Backfield," the "Dallas Wall," and the "Cowboy Triplets." In the 2012 season, the name "Legion of Boom" was first coined by Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas, along with the rest of the secondary. They arrogantly claimed that they could defeat any quarterback.
But over time, they truly made a name for themselves in the league!
The Seattle Seahawks' defense is very special. Under the coaching of Pete Carroll, they have taken an unconventional path and created their own unique style.
Overall, the Seahawks' defense can be described as a mix of traditional and modern.
They use a "4-3" formation on the defensive line, with four defensive linemen and three linebackers, but they mainly follow a retro style from the 1960s. They are willing to sacrifice their ability to rush the quarterback to completely shut down the running game. The players they pick for their defensive line and linebackers are all a reflection of this.
Their two defensive tackles, Alan Branch and Brandon Mebane, and their two defensive ends, Red Bryant and Chris Clemons, are all over 300 pounds, except for Clemons, who is 255 pounds.
Especially defensive end Bryant, who is a whopping 323 pounds. This means that they can hardly get a sack on the quarterback.
The four giant men act like a wall, blocking all the running plays. At the same time, although it's a "4-3" formation, it's actually more like a hybrid of a "4-3" and a "3-4." This makes the linebackers a second barrier for the running game. Pete Carroll requires every linebacker to be able to block the gaps in the defensive line and be quick to shut down short passes in the middle.
This, of course, puts incredibly high demands on the linebackers' abilities but also makes their responsibilities more focused and cohesive, further increasing the pressure on the running game.
The three linebackers, Leroy Hill, K.J. Wright, and Bobby Wagner, are all traditional linebackers around 250 pounds. They can handle both running and short passing defenses but lack some pass-rushing ability, which further strengthens the defense on the front line.
Hill is a veteran who entered the league in 2005, Wright is a second-year player, and Wagner is a rookie, but the three linebackers have developed great chemistry. Middle linebacker Wagner can adapt to all three defensive downs. As the second barrier, he rarely makes mistakes or misses a play and has become the guardian of the Seahawks' running game. Hill and Wright can often step up and cover short passes from the tight ends.
The defensive front is traditional, while the defensive secondary is modern.
The two cornerbacks are Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner, and the two safeties are Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas. All four players are big. Except for Thomas, who is only 5 feet 8 inches, the other three players are all over 6 feet 2 inches.
This is another anti-traditional move.
Since cornerbacks need to be agile and quick, smaller cornerbacks are more popular in the league. Otherwise, when a cornerback faces a wide receiver, he might not be able to turn in time and could get into trouble. But the Seahawks do the opposite. They picked big cornerbacks whose starting and turning speeds are not very fast, but they won't give an inch even when facing a powerful player like Calvin Johnson or Rob Gronkowski.
Generally, during a defense, the four players form a trapezoid box. The two cornerbacks are on the outside of both flanks, Chancellor, as the strong safety, actively comes up to play, and Thomas, as the free safety, guards the backfield alone, forming a three-sided zone defense. All four players are masters of one-on-one coverage and have no problem facing a wide receiver, and then they use a zone defense to call the plays.
If the front line is thick and relies on a team effort to stack layers to stop the running game, then the secondary is flexible. They rely on their individual skills to play one-on-one and then execute a zone defense to shut down all passing routes.
The "Legion of Boom" is the name used to describe the Seattle Seahawks' secondary defense! This season, their pass defense is slowly becoming a nightmare for quarterbacks, as you can see from Brady's difficulties.
Lu Ke has defeated the Seahawks twice in a row, both at home and away, over two consecutive seasons, but he would never underestimate their strength. They have given up on the quarterback sack strategy, shut down the running game, forced quarterbacks to pass, and then used the Legion of Boom to defend the passes. Then, at a crucial defensive moment, they would sack the quarterback without warning, making it impossible to defend. This has indeed put quarterbacks in a difficult position, and even Rodgers was in a tough spot when he faced the Seahawks' defense.
So how did Lu Ke win? Ultimately, it all came down to a strategy of smarts and play-calling. He won with his brain.
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