Dominate the Super Bowl-Chapter 755 - : 754 Third Gear ten yards

Chapter 755: 754 Third Gear ten yards

This season, the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive group was plagued with injuries, and the Kansas City Chiefs were not much better off.

Veterans hindered by injuries, rookies unable to keep up with the intensity of the games, all led to the ranking of the Kansas City Chiefs Defense slipping throughout the season, relying solely on bursts of critical moment power to keep the team alive.

So much so that many in the League joked that the Kansas City Chiefs Defense usually lies flat, just relying on the Offensive group to carry them; then they would charge up their energy, waiting for the critical moment to deliver a deadly blow.

People often forget past mistakes and foolishness in the light of a heroic moment, and victory can similarly cover up all problems.

Clearly, the Watt brothers didn’t see it that way:

The aging and fatigue of the Kansas City Chiefs Defense are facts; yet facing harsher criticism due to the stark contrast with the Offensive group’s strong performances is also true.

In this defense dominated by veterans, the youngsters were growing; they just lacked a spiritual leader and hadn’t grown as quickly as the Offensive group had the previous season; if any team overlooked the Kansas City Chiefs Defense, this young unit would make them taste the bitterness of their decision.

Before him, JJ keenly sensed a subtle undercurrent of change—

Li Wei was still Li Wei.

This young player, who had grown into the flag bearer of leadership for the Kansas City Chiefs, had shed all Rookie mannerisms this season and matured completely.

In this divisional game, JJ could tell, though he didn’t know why, that Li Wei had an unstoppable, determined will to win, unleashing all that energy in the opening offensive wave, igniting the entire Arrowhead Stadium.

Others thought this was the Kansas City Chiefs’ response to the Indianapolis Colts’ opening touchdown, but JJ had a feeling Li Wei didn’t care about that score; he had his own mission, his own battle, and that belief and energy successfully infected the Defense, waking them up as well.

Of course, it could all just be JJ’s wild thoughts; the Kansas City Chiefs Defense’s surge in momentum might simply be because of the playoffs.

After all, it’s now or never, as the playoffs are single-elimination games, with just one chance.

Regardless, JJ was full of anticipation, and he was very, very aware of the capabilities of the Indianapolis Colts and Luck.

In just a week’s time, it was nearly impossible to heal from the previous week’s confident yet crushing blow; just opening his eyes made him feel irritable, and even dedicating himself to exercise in the gym couldn’t shake the distracting thoughts; but JJ still decided to go to Kansas City to watch the game.

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Perhaps fighting poison with poison is the only remedy for now.

The game continues.

It’s somewhat incredible to say, but the Indianapolis Colts had a rotation of three running backs this season.

On one hand, none of the three running backs were particularly effective, with personal skills and tactical abilities that were worrisome, leading Richie to rely heavily on passing offenses; the team was evidently stronger in the passing than the running game, and Richie was constantly looking for the right running back.

On the other hand, Richie’s use of different running backs did bring diversity to the running back’s tactics; besides the well-understood running and receiving, the most important role for the Colts’ running backs was to act as the sixth member of the offensive line, providing full protection for their precious quarterback Luck.

Against teams like the Houston Texans, whose front line pressure is particularly impressive, Richie’s strategy was quite representative—

The three running backs took turns facing JJ Watt, with the focus not on stopping Watt but merely on delaying him, just enough to buy Luck half a second to pass the ball.

Moreover, “three against one,” they took turns wearing down Watt’s stamina, dragging Watt into a quagmire.

Despite Watt still performing well, with two sacks on Luck; the rush pressure strategy didn’t work because the passing offense couldn’t be suppressed.

This strategy was jokingly dubbed the “Read Option Offense inverted.”

Facing the Read Option Offense, there should normally be a lineman assigned to watch the quarterback exclusively; now, the Indianapolis Colts had designated a running back to solely mark the opposing team’s sack specialist.

Moreover, the uniqueness of Richie’s strategy lay in its ability to surprise with ground attacks, often yielding unexpected results.

Thanks to this, the Colts’ Offensive group managed to rank fifth in the league this season, although they didn’t even make the top ten in terms of yards gained on the ground, their overall offensive ranking still entered the higher echelons.

Of course, there were certainly ways to counter this.

The Jacksonville Jaguars had successfully shut out the Indianapolis Colts in the twelfth week of the regular season, with Luck completely losing his way throughout the game.

The key still lay in real-time performance, adapting on the fly; the strategic contest between offense and defense was unceasing.

The most direct point was, the Kansas City Chiefs Defense had no particular strength, but their defensive strategies were more varied, richer, and harder to predict—

Simply put, Richie couldn’t accurately predict when the Chiefs would choose to blitz and apply pressure. Considering the Chiefs also didn’t have a leader like Watt or Donald, Richie’s strategy might not prove effective.

Indeed, faced with the Colts’ second offensive drive, Reed had obviously tweaked his strategy.

The Defensive front maintained pressure but refrained from blitzing; more strength was pulled back to reinforce pass defense, setting up a sprawling aerial and ground net through zone coverage.

The Chiefs did not opt for man-to-man defense because they were aware of Luck’s passing abilities and his secondary defensive reading skills, where even a slight gap could lead to a significant bleed. Thus the team relied on zone coverage to maintain pressure and drag down the rhythm of Luck’s passes as much as possible.

The game noticeably fragmented, completely losing its fluidity.

Luck was still outstanding, making key conversions on third down to salvage passes, finding gaps for continuous advancement under the Chiefs’ intense pressure. This offensive drive tangled for a full six minutes, and the Colts successfully pushed past midfield, their footsteps nearing the twenty-yard line—

The end zone was in sight.

However, as they approached the end zone, the intensity of the Chiefs’ Defense visibly heightened.

One incisive anticipation of the Colt’s sneak run, halting the running back at the scrimmage line.

One successful short-pass zone coverage, causing Luck’s pass to falter.

Third and ten, in the blink of an eye, the Colts faced the most serious situation of this offensive push; even though they had the initiative and could attempt a field goal in case of a strikeout, but gazing at the end zone so close at hand, Richie and Luck still wanted a touchdown.

The atmosphere instantly tightened; Arrowhead Stadium plunged into a frenzy.

“Defense! Clap clap!”

“Defense! Clap clap!”

The entire stadium roared, an overwhelming tide of sound waves nearly devouring the Colts’ Offensive group, showcasing the power of the Devil’s home field at Arrowhead Stadium.

Luck remained unmoved.

“Attack!”

His firm and heroic voice pierced the heavens as the dense, suffocating gunpowder air instantly detonated, rumbling violently atop the eardrum.