Chapter 704: Welcome Back
The "Bountygate" scandal shook the entire league, once again refreshing people's understanding of the phrase "winning by any means necessary" and their feelings about the phrase "profit comes first." It cast a dark shadow over the fair play of competitive sports.
Objectively speaking, football is a sport with tough contact and rough physicality. The quarterback is the focal point of the hits, and aggressive tackles and rough defense are part of the game. But a bounty program that specifically created a bonus pool to encourage unfair and aggressive hits was a whole other level.
In any sport, hitting and striking an opponent with the intent to injure them is disgraceful, and that's even true in boxing. Football is no exception.
After this negative news broke, the NFL's reputation and prestige suffered a severe blow, and the New Orleans Saints were, for a time, a public enemy.
To stop the damage in time, Roger Goodell severely punished the matter with the highest level of treatment and showed a resolute and decisive hand, quickly putting an end to the entire affair.
According to the investigation, the league officially determined that the head coach and the team's general manager were aware of the situation and hid it, and this behavior further worsened the situation. But since no club operating funds were involved and the team owner, Tom Benson, clearly expressed his opposition after learning about it and fully cooperated with the investigation, the league believed Benson was not involved. However, the management was still to blame.
In the end, the league fined the New Orleans Saints five hundred thousand dollars, which was the maximum fine the league had the right to impose. At the same time, it stripped the team of its second-round draft picks in 2012 and 2013, which was a penalty decision made after considering the special circumstance that the Saints had already traded their 2012 first-round pick to the New England Patriots.
In addition, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, as the main culprit, was banned for life. Head coach Sean Payton, as an accomplice, was suspended for one year. As for the players, the main ringleader, Jonathan Vilma, was suspended for one year, and the other players and coaches who participated were also given suspensions and fines of varying lengths.
The severe punishment came down like a storm and was settled in just a few weeks, controlling the negative impact as much as possible. Nevertheless, the Bountygate scandal still caused a frenzy of discussion in all the news media.
Throughout the offseason, Akers deliberately blocked all news and cut off all contact, truly calming down to consider the possibility of retirement. It was only after his seclusion ended that he suddenly heard of such news. Even though everything was already over, he still found it hard to believe that it had actually happened.
After arriving at the training camp, Akers' first reaction was to ask Lu Ke for confirmation.
After seeing Lu Ke's reaction, Akers knew that the news was not an April Fool's joke. He couldn't help but shake his head. "Thank God. Jesus Christ, we were so lucky. It's a good thing we only met them in the divisional round."
In the wild card game, the New Orleans Saints still played dirty against the Detroit Lions.
Although Matthew Stafford was not injured, no one knew whether the defense's rough hits had changed the outcome of the game. Or, whether the aggressive hits made Stafford hesitant, and he was completely unable to get anything going in the second half, and was eventually outmatched by the elite quarterback Drew Brees, causing a complete collapse.
The fact was, in the very next round, the New Orleans Saints stood across from the San Francisco 49ers.
Lu Ke's footwork and ability to take hits were not his strong suits. If the Saints' defense had intentionally made rough hits during the game, the consequences would have been unimaginable. A single hit could have ended Lu Ke's entire career. Just the possibility of it was enough to make everyone break out in a cold sweat.
Thinking about it further, was it because he suffered multiple serious hits in the game against the New Orleans Saints that it indirectly led to multiple injuries in the game against the New York Giants, which ultimately caused the team to lose the game?
This was a guess that couldn't be proven, but for the San Francisco 49ers' players, it was still a sad thought, especially after witnessing the unwillingness and regret of players like Ted Ginn and Justin Smith.
That was why Akers felt this way. And after sighing, he still couldn't help but sigh again. He patted Lu Ke's shoulder hard. He didn't say a word, but it was full of deep meaning and emotion. He didn't know what the other players and coaches were thinking, but for him, all the hope for victory was tied to Lu Ke.
With this simple action, Akers could feel Lu Ke's physique and build. It didn't look like a huge change, but his muscles were firmer, his body was tighter, and a hidden burst of power was transmitted through his palm.
Akers couldn't help but squeeze Lu Ke's muscles. A happy light appeared in his eyes. "It looks like someone trained with perfect attendance this offseason."
Lu Ke laughed lightly and clenched his fists, deliberately posing like a bodybuilder showing off his biceps, as if he was showing off his offseason results. It instantly made Akers laugh, and then he could hear familiar voices from a distance.
"Hey, David, you showed up!" "What, is the strike finally over? Did your salary double?" "Finally, finally, our biggest star showed up." "Good. The special teams can finally calm down. Our backbone is back." "Man, welcome back"...
Welcome back.
The smile on Akers' face was wide and bright. He still missed this field. Even just standing here, his blood couldn't help but bubble up. "How about ten field goals? Anyone want to bet? I bet Bambi can't kick a single one."
"Wait, are you betting with your arm or your leg? Your leg? Then count me out."
"Haha, Bambi, all the teams in Europe's top five leagues that were trying to poach you have all backed off now. This isn't good for you."
...
Amidst the bustling laughter, the day's training began again.
Although only Akers was added to the training lineup, that sense of familiarity was slowly returning to the training field. It seemed that even the energy under the scorching sun was becoming more lively and cheerful. However, training was training. Even Akers had to systematically integrate into the daily training routine.
From the team warm-up to position-specific drills, and then to the tactical practice between the first and second teams, everything was on track. It was just another normal day in the offseason.
"Move! You're all too slow, damn it! Was that footwork the rhythm of an eighty-year-old lady? Why is it so slow! Speed up, all of you!"
"Again, again, what was the play I just called? Why are all the receivers going in the wrong direction? What are you guys doing! Damn it! All of you, get your heads in the game!"
"Hit! Hit! Hit! Don't hesitate, don't be greedy! If I tell you to defend number 75, you defend number 75. Don't worry about what number 68 is doing, do you hear me?"
"Hey! Hey! Number 63, number 63, are you crazy? Huh? Everyone, stop what you're doing and pay attention. Number 63, are you out of your mind?"
Over the training field, Jim Harbaugh's rough and violent voice echoed constantly, pointing out the mistakes and problems in every practice snap. It was mixed with the shouts of the offensive coordinator, the defensive coordinator, the linebacker coach, the tight end coach, and so on. They all formed a large net, completely enveloping all the players.
One play had to be practiced over and over again. The same play, how to use it on a first and ten, and how to use it on a third and ten. How to use it in your own half, and how to use it in the red zone. All of these were completely different. Every player had to deeply understand the playbook and use it in practice, otherwise, it would all be in vain.
During the training, Harbaugh lost his mind because of the actions of player number 63 and forcefully stopped the training. "Everyone, listen up! Number 63, what was the first thing I said before training? Tell me, huh? What was the first thing I said?"
Player number 63 was Tony Jerod-Eddie, this year's undrafted rookie. He played as a nose tackle on the defensive line in college, but there was no nose tackle position in the San Francisco 49ers' defensive system, so he now played as a defensive tackle.
Facing Harbaugh's storm, Eddie couldn't help but lower his head and touch his helmet. "Don't hit the quarterback."
"Louder! Jesus-fucking-Christ!" Harbaugh roared even more fiercely.
"Don't hit the quarterback!" Eddie could only close his eyes tightly and shout as hard as he could.
Only then did Harbaugh nod. "Yes, don't hit the quarterback! What were you doing just now? Are you crazy?" His face was full of disbelief. Then he looked around at all his teammates. "I'll emphasize this again. Don't hit the quarterback! Or you can get the fuck out! You lunatics! Now, let's start training again. The same play as before, one more time! Damn it!"
Accidental injuries during team training in the offseason were fatal for any team and any player. No one wanted it to happen, and everyone was trying to avoid it.
It wasn't just for Lu Ke. All thirty-two teams' coaches would do the same. In the offseason tactical training, they would order all defensive players not to hit the quarterback to avoid any possibility of injury. If a player at another position got injured, they could still play with some treatment. But if something happened to the quarterback, it would be a fatal blow.
The consecutive accidents that happened to the San Francisco 49ers during the offseason last year were the best proof.
This year, Harbaugh didn't want to go through it again.
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