Dominate the Super Bowl-Chapter 323: bite tightly and refuse to let go

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The trees want to stand still, but the wind won’t stop.

Finally, the Kansas City Chiefs’ locker room had shaken off the gloom and gotten back on track, but the media’s fanning of the flames had once again sown seeds of unrest.

Anticipating this, the offensive group’s captain Kelsey took the initiative to burst the paper window in the locker room, to stop players from gossiping and possibly creating conflicts out of nothing, putting everything under the sun.

As Kelsey said, when others tried to accuse Li Wei of not focusing on the game, they should consider how brutal this training demon was.

Moreover, Li Wei had left after practice was over yesterday, not missing any training. Those media were all exaggerating and causing unnecessary panic. He needed to remind those envious and jealous eyes—

In a joking, half-serious manner.

But unexpectedly, the defensive group’s captain, Houston, also rarely spoke up.

Having said that, Houston even gave Li Wei a glance.

"Rookie, you don’t have to take those garbage words from the media to heart."

Li Wei waved his hand, looking unperturbed, "Their trash talk is too weak, they still need to brush up on their skills. I’m more worried about the locker room."

Houston was taken aback.

Some things, actually, don’t need to be pointed out. Blatantly pointing them out might make things awkward, something Li Wei surely knows.

But Houston didn’t interrupt Li Wei—

Indeed, he wasn’t finished talking.

"I’m worried you all might get a heart attack from the shock of seeing the endorsement figures. I was thinking about whether I should prepare some Christmas gifts to bribe everyone."

"But..."

"Look, what am I thinking, earning a rookie’s salary, doing a running back’s job, yet here I am worrying about a quarterback’s concerns, maybe I’m too arrogant."

Pfft.

In an instant, the entire locker room burst into laughter, one after another teasing him.

Honestly, seeing the news that Li Wei might sign another endorsement deal, envy and jealousy were inevitable. After all, he already had one from Nike, and Li Wei was just a rookie. But, most players in the league don’t have personal sponsorships, so the media’s exaggerated stories sounded different when they reached their ears.

But now, Li Wei openly joked about it. He was just a rookie player, and his salary was probably just chump change to the other players. Moreover, as a running back, his position was among the lowest average salaries in the offensive group. Even if Li Wei got some extra endorsements, it was deserved—

After all, he had really performed well this season.

After a round of playful banter, any potential conflicts that might have been brewing in the locker room were nipped in the bud and turned into a ribbing session, all thanks to Li Wei.

"Alex!"

"Alex!"

"Alex!"

Smith, who had been quietly watching the play, was suddenly the center of attention, looking at everyone in the locker room with a puzzled expression. It took him many beats too long to realize:

These guys were treating him like Santa Claus, shamelessly demanding gifts.

There was no way out. Unless a rookie played as the starting quarterback, quarterbacks were usually the highest-paid members of the team, with few exceptions.

How could Smith, the Good Old Man, possibly refuse? Since he couldn’t say no, he might as well enjoy it. He spread his arms wide, basking in the applause and catcalls, spinning 360 degrees on the spot. Then he saw Li Wei and Mahomes, who were laughing especially hard, and he couldn’t help but laugh out loud himself.

Outside the locker room.

Childres turned his head to look at Reed, and the two exchanged a glance—

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Reed saw what was happening with the media and knew it could cause unrest in the locker room, especially as the playoffs approached—these unsettling factors could become the key to the season’s direction.

They needed action, needed to control the locker room before a crisis emerged.

What he hadn’t expected was that the team captains had also foreseen such a scenario, and with Li Wei’s clever handling in response, a potential crisis was averted with ease.

Childres expressed sincere admiration, "Coach, did you see these qualities in him from the beginning, anticipating this moment would come?"

Otherwise, why would the Kansas City Chiefs be willing to take a huge risk and trade up to select Li Wei with the third pick?

Without any particular expression, Reed’s eyes nonetheless betrayed a hint of satisfaction, "No, I didn’t expect his growth to be this rapid."

This situation, if not handled properly, could have planted seeds of future trouble, but now, from Kelsey and Houston to Li Wei and Smith, the four of them worked together to control the situation, and Berry probably didn’t have to worry about the team anymore.

Perhaps, after the ups and downs of this season, the Kansas City Chiefs could grow into a more mature team and truly possess a team’s soul.

But Reed said nothing more, signaling to Childres to turn and leave.

However!

Unexpectedly, during subsequent training sessions, it became obvious that Li Wei was keeping his distance from the other teammates, with only familiar faces like Kelsey and Mahomes silently accompanying him.

It was clear to anyone with insight that the training atmosphere was slightly off.

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Reed: ???

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After some thought, Reed discreetly pulled Kelsey aside to ask about it and received an answer that was both amusing and exasperating.

"What?"

Kelsey, seeing Reed’s speechless face, chuckled and explained again, "It’s a prank. The rookie says it’s called ’espionage’, to confuse the opponents, to see if they take the bait."

All of it was Li Wei’s idea—

Since the media was attempting to divide the locker room, they decided to play along.

During regular training, they deliberately staged the illusion of isolating Li Wei, waiting for the media to keep fanning the flames, to see if the Los Angeles Chargers would fall for it.

"During the actual game, we’ll give our old rivals some surprises," Kelsey said.

Watching Kelsey’s eager, smiling face, Reed didn’t say much, simply gesturing for Kelsey to rejoin the team, "Just be careful not to take it too far."

As he watched Kelsey’s retreating figure, Reed couldn’t help but admire Li Wei’s cleverness.

The prank was just an excuse, an excuse to unite the whole team against outsiders, to forge camaraderie. As they collaborated to play a prank on the media and deceive their opponents, they became partners in the same boat, and any remaining discord and unease would vanish without a trace.

If they could fool the Los Angeles Chargers, that would be a bonus; but even if they didn’t, it didn’t matter—the focus was on the team working together toward the same goal.

After all, the players have had their fair share of friction with the media, even the Good Old Man like Smith was attacked by the media daily, and now they finally had a chance to retaliate. One by one, they were eagerly on board.

That was the main point.

Looking again at Li Wei, Reed’s eyes showed a touch of appreciation.

Indeed—

After training ended, the media reporters immediately aimed their cameras and mics at Li Wei, who typically navigated the media with ease, but now, with a dour and dispirited face, ignored them completely and hurried past, unresponsive to the calling media, unable to slow his pace.

It wasn’t until Li Wei had gone far away that the reporters exchanged glances, excitement flashing in their eyes:

Ha ha, even the rookie has his day!