The morning was spent on physical conditioning and strength training. In the afternoon, the entire team shifted to tactical drills.
Tactical training naturally involved scrimmages—internal training games. Head Coach Herman Edwards assigned Zhao Dong to two positions: running back on the offensive team, and linebacker on the defensive team.
Zhao Dong officially belonged to the defensive unit. Previously, there were two core factions within the defensive team. One, formerly led by Venis, had dispersed after his downfall and eventually aligned with Zhao Dong. However, the second faction still remained intact.
The core of that group was linebacker Kaneki Lewis, who played the same position as Zhao Dong. That alone put them in direct competition for a starting role.
Lewis was one of the team's main linebackers and acted as the defensive play-caller, making him the central figure of the defense on the field. Traditionally, linebackers serve as the defensive core—positioned behind the front line, with a clear view of offensive formations. They are responsible for both making quick reads and issuing real-time adjustments.
Although Lewis wasn't a physical standout or star-level talent, he had strong tactical awareness, which earned him his role as the on-field commander.
Because of this crucial role, he had more influence than Venis ever did within the defensive team—and unlike Venis, Lewis had kept his core circle intact. That said, half of his group had already started gravitating toward Zhao Dong, and that shift didn't sit well with him.
When the coaching staff arranged a team scrimmage, and Zhao Dong was placed on offense as a running back, Lewis saw it as the perfect opportunity to send him a message.
---
Back in the locker room, Zhao Dong suited up alongside the rest of the team.
Helmet. Shoulder and chest pads. Elbow pads. Gloves. Waist and hip protection. Thigh and knee guards. Cleats. Full uniform.
Clack. Clack. Clack...
Dozens of fully geared players marched out of the locker room, their footsteps thunderous in the corridor—like an army going to war. The air was electric.
Zhao Dong walked near the front, towering in his gear. Over thirty players who had aligned themselves with him followed closely behind.
Up ahead were the remaining twenty or so players who still held their distance.
Click, click, click...
Reporters lined the hallway, snapping photos as they passed. Most of the camera flashes focused on Zhao Dong—he stood out effortlessly.
"Zhao Dong! Are you playing in today's scrimmage?" a reporter called out.
"I'll follow whatever the coaching staff decides," Zhao Dong replied with a smile.
---
"Let's begin," Coach Edwards barked.
The offensive and defensive squads took the field, lining up on either side of the line of scrimmage. There would be no kick-off in today's drill.
Unlike soccer, where games begin with a midfield kickoff, the NFL's opening play is executed by the defense kicking to the offense—with the special teams unit on the field. But since this was purely tactical training, Coach Edwards skipped that segment.
Instead, he set the starting offensive position at the 20-yard line.
The first formation Edwards called for was the classic I formation—a formation built for rushing plays.
---
In American football, there are two core types of offensive plays: passing and rushing. The I formation focuses on rushing. It places two running backs behind the quarterback—usually a fullback and a halfback.
The fullback is typically bigger and stronger, responsible for clearing the path. The halfback is faster and more agile, the one who carries the ball and makes the run.
In this scrimmage, Zhao Dong was positioned as the fullback, tasked with opening a path for the halfback behind him once the play began.
---
The field stretched 100 yards long and 53 yards wide, with a 10-yard end zone on each end, making the total length 120 yards. Due to the grid of evenly spaced yard lines, the football field was often nicknamed the "grill pan."
On the 20-yard line, both squads lined up. The defensive team had no fixed formation requirements—it could adjust as needed. In contrast, the offensive team had strict structural rules, including a requirement of at least seven players on the line of scrimmage.
Typically, the offensive line includes:
Five linemen (center, two guards, and two tackles),
One tight end (usually right side),
One wide receiver (usually split out wide).
Behind them, the quarterback stood directly behind the center. In this rushing play, his positioning was closer than usual to facilitate handoffs.
Zhao Dong stood about two yards behind and slightly to the left of the quarterback—his role as fullback perfectly placed for the rushing play.
---
Boom. Boom. Boom...
Even though it was just a scrimmage, Zhao Dong's adrenaline was already pumping. His heart pounded. He could feel the heat rising in his chest.
On the other side of the line of scrimmage stood the defense—four linemen up front, and behind them, three linebackers.
In the center was Kaneki Lewis, the man responsible for calling defensive plays. His steel-mask helmet barely concealed his glare.
"Humph."
Lewis snorted, eyes locked on Zhao Dong like a predator watching prey.
In the NFL, quarterbacks can adjust the offense at the line based on how the defense lines up. However, since this was tactical training, quarterback Weilin Paul stuck to the play called by Coach Edwards. Communication ran through a headset in Paul's helmet, allowing Edwards to control play selection and substitutions directly.
Nearby, seven referees—each assigned a specific role—stood in their respective positions. Behind the offensive team, the head referee raised his whistle and blew it sharply.
PWEET!
"Set... hike!"
Weilin Paul shouted.
---
The center, McGill—nicknamed Thor—snapped the ball cleanly between his legs into Paul's hands.
BOOM!
The moment the ball was snapped, the four defensive linemen charged like bulls, crashing violently into the five offensive linemen. The front line became an instant battlefield of pure force.
Zhao Dong, per tactical instruction, sprinted in a curved route to the left side, skirting past the chaos to create a lane.
Click, click, click...
Reporters on the sidelines raised their cameras. This was Zhao Dong's first live scrimmage with the team. Everyone wanted the shot.
Behind Zhao Dong, quarterback Weilin Paul handed the ball off to the halfback, who tucked it tightly and accelerated—charging right behind Zhao Dong through the open gap.
In reality, this wasn't a standard rushing play—it was a play-action fake designed to deceive the defense. Quarterback Weilin Paul still had the ball in his hands.
As the defense bit hard on the fake run, the two wide receivers streaked down the sidelines, pulling defenders wide. The tight end, however, slipped inside and cut toward the middle of the field. That was the real target.
Zhao Dong and the halfback? Decoys. Meant to draw the defense away and mask the true intent.
Head Coach Edwards had no reason to reveal the offensive call to the defense—what would be the point of tactical training otherwise?
But Kaneki Lewis, calling plays for the defense, didn't pick up on the ruse. He had eyes only for Zhao Dong. The moment Zhao Dong started to charge forward, Lewis cut past the chaos at the line of scrimmage and sprinted to meet him head-on.
Another linebacker broke through as well, closing in on the halfback who appeared to be carrying the ball.
---
Faster... faster...
Behind his helmet, Lewis's face twisted into a scowl. He didn't just want to stop the play—he wanted to make Zhao Dong pay. He intended to flatten the "Chinese rookie" in a brutal, humiliating collision.
In a normal scrimmage, that kind of intensity would be unnecessary. But this wasn't about training anymore. This was personal.
Zhao Dong's job was simple: open a lane for the halfback. He wasn't supposed to avoid contact—he was meant to deliver it. And from the look of things, Lewis wasn't going to hold back.
Zhao Dong had initially held back his speed. This was just a training drill, after all. But as he rounded the corner and saw Lewis charging full speed, something changed. He recognized the look in Lewis's eyes. He knew this hit wouldn't be clean.
So Zhao Dong shifted gears, accelerating hard—trying to trigger the Savage Collision Talent Badge just before impact.
---
"BOOM!"
Just past the 50-yard line, the two collided with a crack that echoed across the entire field.
Click! Click! Click!
Shutters fired in rapid succession as reporters caught the moment on camera.
"Holy hell! Are they actually going full contact?!" someone on the sideline shouted.
Everyone turned to look.
---
At the moment of impact, Kaneki Lewis—185 cm tall, 106 kg of muscle—felt like he had run straight into a freight train.
Zhao Dong plowed through him like a bulldozer, driving his shoulder into Lewis's chest and sending him sprawling backward.
"CRACK!"
The force reverberated through Lewis's pads, straight into his chest and skull. His vision spun. His breath vanished.
Zhao Dong crashed down on top of him, grinning beneath his facemask like a predator that had just taken down its prey.
Behind him, the halfback sprinted forward, surging through the gap Zhao Dong had created. Ten yards... twelve yards... before he was finally taken down by the scrambling defense.
But by then, the ball had already left Weilin Paul's hands.
The tight end, completely uncovered in the middle, had taken the pass and gone streaking up the field. With no defenders in sight, he dodged two safeties and scored a touchdown.
---
"Idiot!"
Edwards cursed from the sideline.
He wasn't yelling at Zhao Dong. His fury was directed at Lewis.
As the on-field defensive leader, he had completely failed to read the play. Instead of anchoring the defense, he let personal bias blind him and abandoned his assignment.
---
Zhao Dong pushed himself off Lewis's chest and waved at Coach Melos, who was acting as the referee for the scrimmage.
"Coach, I think he's injured," he said, pointing at Lewis.
Melos rushed over, as did the team doctor, John McJohn.
"Coach Edwards!" McJohn shouted. "He's coughing blood—there's a risk of internal bleeding. He needs to be sent to the hospital."
Edwards didn't hesitate. "Get him off the field. Let's move."
---
Lewis could still walk, but just barely. As he was helped off, he turned back toward Zhao Dong, eyes full of hate and disbelief.
Zhao Dong didn't even glance at him. He'd seen plenty of guys like Lewis before. He calmly brought up his system menu.
He suspected he'd triggered the Savage Collision Talent Badge during that hit—he had felt that sudden burst of power just before impact.
But the bonus must've been minimal—just a 5% power boost. Not enough to cause serious damage, but certainly enough to rattle Lewis.
He checked the badge tracker.
No progress.
The system had not logged the collision toward the badge's upgrade. Apparently, intrasquad scrimmages didn't count—only official games did.
---
"Zhao Dong! You're on defense now. Outside linebacker!" Edwards shouted across the field.
His voice was animated, and his clenched fists betrayed his excitement.
That collision had told him everything he needed to know.
He didn't just have a promising rookie.
He had a rare monster—a power linebacker with the speed of a wide receiver and the build of a defensive end.
Most linebackers and running backs in the league sat around 180 cm and 102 kg to balance speed and agility.
Zhao Dong? 205 cm, 115 kg, with elite acceleration and change-of-direction. That wasn't just unusual—it was game-breaking.
But Edwards also sighed internally.
Four injuries in one day, including two starters… Is this guy lethal or what?
He could only hope Zhao Dong would save that destruction for opponents, not teammates.
---
Edwards stepped up and raised his voice.
"Alright, listen up! This is a scrimmage—not a war zone! Ease up out there. If I catch anyone going headfirst like a goddamn lunatic again, I'll have you doing sprints 'til you puke!"
---
Lewis's injury didn't make waves. In the NFL, if no one got hurt during a training session, it probably wasn't real football.
The scrimmage continued.
And Edwards took note—Zhao Dong needed more reps.
Over the next hour, Zhao Dong rotated between multiple positions: fullback, outside linebacker, even tight end.
His physical presence was undeniable. His understanding of formations and schemes was shockingly good, especially for someone who'd just switched sports.
But his chemistry with teammates? Still developing. He executed plays as called, but lacked the improvisational instinct that came with experience.
Still, Edwards and the coaching staff were impressed.
"He's a natural," Edwards muttered to Coach Melos. "Jack, give him some extra attention. We need him up to speed by Week One."
"Got it," Melos nodded with a grin.
---
The whistle blew. Scrimmage over. Training done for the day.
As players headed off the field, reporters swarmed in.
Unsurprisingly, every camera zeroed in on Zhao Dong.
"Zhao Dong! You seem pretty comfortable with the physicality out there?"
He smiled. "Of course. It's not like this is my first time playing football."
"But the regular season will be ten times more intense than this scrimmage. Are you ready for that?"
"I am," Zhao Dong replied calmly. "That's why I'm here."
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