Chapter 595: Tactical Awareness
Buzz, buzz, buzz.
The atmosphere inside Candlestick Park was tense and suppressed. Everyone held their breath, keeping the usual noise to a minimum, afraid that any sound might influence the referee's decision. But the anxious and nervous emotions made it impossible for them to sit still. They stretched their necks, curiously trying to see what was happening.
In front of the San Francisco 49ers' end zone, around the three-yard line, players were piled on top of each other in a small mountain. No one could accurately tell what was going on. The referees had to pull the players out one by one, like pulling up carrots, to figure out the situation and make a call.
"Fumble! Fumble! It's a fumble!"
The moment the head referee announced the decision, the entire stadium erupted. Everyone was jumping up and down, cheering and shouting wildly. The overwhelming roar was like the floodgates of a dam opening, releasing a torrent of sound that even shook the ground.
"In the previous two plays, Whitner was called for a penalty twice in a row, giving the opponent a first down and ruining the defense's effort. But this time, he came up big in front of the end zone, making the most important tackle of the game. His tough hit knocked the ball loose from Saints wide receiver Thomas, and 49ers cornerback Carlos Rogers recovered the ball, creating the first turnover of the game!"
"For the New Orleans Saints, this is definitely not good news."
"In today's game, Drew Brees came out in good form. Facing the 49ers' aggressive blitz, he threw the ball before being sacked at least three times, which kept the drive alive. He even pushed all the way into the red zone, just six yards from a touchdown, but everything came to a halt on the three-yard line."
"A fumble! A fumble! The Saints' first drive ended with a fumble, which was completely unexpected."
The rapid commentary in the studio presented a panoramic view of all the details of the first drive. Afterward, Teddy handed the microphone to the three guest commentators so they could provide their professional analysis. Johnston handled the offensive commentary, Siragusa the defensive, and Kirk gave an overall summary.
Lu Ke felt a little nervous, with a bit of sweat on his fingertips. Honestly, this was the biggest stage and the most important game of his career. Maybe in a year or two, he'd casually say it was just a playoff game. But not today. He could clearly feel his heart pounding and his muscles tensing up.
There was no way to get rid of this nervousness. This was the power of the big stage, and a rookie couldn't resist it. There was no shortcut or easy fix. He could only build up his experience, game by game—or, he was just born with the poise for the big stage.
Standing on the sidelines, Lu Ke carefully watched Brees's offensive layout and his reads. Watching from the sidelines was a world away from watching on video. The San Francisco 49ers' defense was incredibly tough, but Brees consistently made the right choices in the chaos. He was clearly targeting the area on the Saints' right side, the 49ers' left side. The pairing of cornerback Reggie Smith and safety Donte Whitner was indeed weaker compared to the duo of Carlos Rogers and C.J. Spillman on the other side.
The 49ers' defensive front line was ranked in the top three in the league for run defense and quarterback sacks, but their pass defense was only ranked seventh. In the first drive, this became Brees's weakness to exploit, and he was successful repeatedly. The New Orleans Saints' offensive attack seemed fast and simple, but in reality, it was a methodical drive that took a full six minutes and sixteen seconds to get to the edge of the 49ers' end zone. If it hadn't been for the fumble...
"A fumble!" The San Francisco 49ers' defense caused a fumble and successfully recovered the ball! Lu Ke clenched his fists tightly! He jumped with excitement. The moment he realized he was about to go on the field, all his nervousness vanished, replaced by a surge of passion. He couldn't wait to get on the field and engage in a tactical and physical battle with the opposing defense!
His hot brain immediately cooled down. He focused on the game, concentrating all his attention on the opposing defense, and got ready. This was just a game—a game to win with all his might!
This season, the New Orleans Saints' defense was ranked 13th in the league, with their pass defense ranked 11th and their run defense ranked 28th. In other words, this was a team where the secondary defense was significantly stronger than the defensive line. They applied limited pressure on the quarterback and the offensive line, and they relied more on their secondary's zone coverage to defend.
Despite this, this defense was widely considered the best Saints' defense since Sean Payton took over in 2006, even better than their championship year in 2009. The most important reason for this was their four starters in the secondary—two cornerbacks and two safeties—who had a good setup, excellent chemistry, and were all in their prime.
The two cornerbacks, Jabari Greer and Tracy Porter, were both in their prime. The former was an undrafted rookie in 2004 who had a slow start but a strong finish to his career and contributed an interception against the Lions in the last game. The latter was a second-round pick in 2008 whose biggest achievement was intercepting Peyton Manning in the 2009 Super Bowl and returning it for a 74-yard touchdown.
The two safeties, Malcolm Jenkins and Roman Harper, were also excellent. The former was a first-round pick in 2009 who had his best year last year, winning the NFC Defensive Player of the Week three times, but his form had dropped this season. The latter was a second-round pick in 2006 who had been selected to the Pro Bowl for two consecutive years and was a leader in the Saints' secondary.
On paper, the four players were indeed in great shape. From their height to their weight and style, they were almost identical. From a positive perspective, their defensive style was unified, agile, and mobile, often able to unleash powerful energy in zone defense. But from a negative perspective, they lacked variation, depth, and different tactics. When facing complex plays, they often lost the initiative, especially in man-to-man coverage mismatches. This was why the Saints' pass defense was only ranked 11th in the league during the regular season.
In his mind, all the information about the Saints' defense was laid out: their stats and style, their abilities and form. In the past two weeks, he had watched game videos over and over, studying and discussing them repeatedly. In the game, it all came to life.
Gradually, players from both teams left the field. Carlos Rogers and Donte Whitner walked toward Lu Ke. They didn't say much, just gave him a high five, as if in a relay. The defense had completed their mission, and now it was the offense's turn. Lu Ke was officially on the field!
Because of the fumble, the San Francisco offense was about to start their drive from their own three-yard line. After getting on the field, the 49ers set up a standard "2x2" offensive formation. On the left were Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis, and on the right were Ted Ginn and Logan Newman. Then, Lu Ke stood behind center Jonathan Goodwin, and Marcus Lynch was four yards behind, in a traditional running formation.
It was well known that starting a drive from the edge of the end zone was very tricky and dangerous. A slight mistake could give up a safety. And if they were even more careless, an interception or fumble could easily be returned for a touchdown. So, the offense had to be extra cautious. In this situation, a running play was the safest option.
But the problem was that the San Francisco 49ers had never been known for their conservative style. Now, they were in a traditional "I" formation for a running play, which surprisingly made people feel uneasy. Standing in the pocket, Lu Ke didn't snap the ball immediately. Instead, he took his time to read the defense. There were seven defensive players on the front line: four defensive linemen and three linebackers. The three linebackers were standing a little further back in a pyramid shape. The entire defense seemed a bit stacked, concentrated in the middle of the short-pass area.
There were four defensive players in the secondary. The two cornerbacks were in a forward position, guarding the two 49ers' wide receivers, respectively. One safety stood behind the three linebackers, moving back and forth, and the other safety had retreated to about 15 yards away, in a long-pass defense stance. The entire defensive formation presented a pyramid shape, with each layer getting weaker further back. All the defensive power was concentrated in the central area, showing a zone defense stance. This allowed the middle players to move left and right according to the receivers' routes, giving the defense a slight advantage.
However, the entire formation was clearly projected in Lu Ke's mind. The three-dimensional image was so detailed and accurate. With his top-notch tactical awareness, a single player's movement seemed to instantly predict the change of the entire play, perfectly embodying the essence of "one action affecting the whole situation."
He turned to his left and shouted a signal. Then, Vernon Davis slowly moved from the gap between Lu Ke and Marcus to the right side. At the same time, safety Jenkins followed Vernon, and another linebacker also stepped up and moved to the right side of the San Francisco 49ers.
It was clearly a man-to-man defense. Lu Ke's eyebrow lifted slightly. Since it was a man-to-man defense, he wouldn't hold back.
"Hut!"
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