Dominate the Super Bowl

Chapter 489: 488 Taking a different approach Chapter 489: 488 Taking a different approach Standing behind the offensive line, Smith was observing the defensive formation.

The pounding of his heart and his rapid breathing interwoven into a roaring din that brutally pummeled his eardrums, as time and air both seemed to come to a standstill.

He wanted to win, just once, not to prove anything, but simply to win.

Then, slowly bending his knees and lowering his center of gravity, he stared unblinkingly at the defensive formation in front of him, his concentration reaching an unprecedented peak—

As expected, the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive formation looked like a pocket, with the cornerbacks close to the sidelines, safeties at the back, and linemen pressing the front line, thus forming a neat square box that encapsulated the offensive group.

In simple terms, the priority was to prevent the Kansas City Chiefs from passing the ball out of bounds to stop the clock, making the Eagles’ defensive priorities clear and direct.

The pressure, naturally, was all on the Chiefs.

So, what would the Kansas City Chiefs choose?

The Kansas City Chiefs unsurprisingly adopted the Shotgun Formation, a typical passing offense formation.

Though Li Wei and Hunter, both running backs, were included, based on their positions, they were both wide receivers.

This was the Five Wide Receivers Formation.

Indeed, in such a situation, there weren’t many tactical secrets, for neither the offense nor the defense.

Sigh.

Smith took a deep breath, sinking it into his Dantian, his voice booming like a large bell.

“Attack!”

The command tore through the air with the swiftness of lightning, and gunpowder surged forth.

Bang, bang bang bang.

The Philadelphia Eagles didn’t opt for a blitz, but the defensive line applied pressure immediately, the collision setting off a series of dull thuds; meanwhile, the linemen joined the cornerbacks, marking their targets closely from the get-go—

“Five Wide Receivers vs.

Five in Coverage.”

Pederson’s tactical strategy suddenly became clear:

Utilize three linemen and two cornerbacks for man-to-man coverage, with two safeties jointly launching a zone coverage, spinning a web of defense on the second line that was impermeable; finally, relying on the defensive line to symbolically pressure Smith, ready to strike if any protection rupture occurred in the offensive line’s pocket or if Smith held the ball too long.

Meticulous, comprehensive, powerful.

Since Foles and Ertz couldn’t end the game with the Eagles’ offense, the Eagles’ defensive group stepped up to finish the job.

Man-to-man coverage, it was that simple.

Then.

Linebacker Bradham sensed something was off—

Li Wei?

Everyone knew that Li Wei was the biggest threat in the Chiefs’ offense, but in the current situation, a running back’s role was limited, and Li Wei’s threat level plummeted.

As long as Li Wei’s running route didn’t approach the sidelines, the likelihood of him being a passing target diminished, so Bradham was tasked with marking him alone.

Despite this, Bradham didn’t let his guard down, watching Li Wei like a hawk, with a nagging suspicion that Li Wei and Reed might have an ace up their sleeve.

But then!

After the snap, the other four arrows all launched into action, but Li Wei didn’t.

Immediately, Bradham’s alarm bells rang.

His feet reflexively moved forward, but he quickly realized he shouldn’t make hasty moves.

Remaining still to counteract motion was the right approach, and he had to forcefully suppress the urge to rush out, standing his ground instead.

And at that moment—

Damn!

Bradham was taken aback.

“…Run the ball!”

“Without hesitation, Smith decisively handed the football off to Li Wei, and the Kansas City Chiefs chose to run, opening the play with a ground attack.”

“This…”

Shock, impact.

At such a critical, tense, and dangerous moment, the Kansas City Chiefs incredibly broke expectations and unbelievably handed the football to Li Wei.

In an instant, everyone remembered the game from Week 6 of the regular season, when the Chiefs faced the Pittsburgh Steelers under similar circumstances and adversity.

In that game, Smith chose a middle pass, connected with Li Wei, who achieved the breakthrough and advance, and ultimately turned the game around with a last-minute win.

So, now too?

The entire U.S.

Bank Stadium fell silent, mouths agape, eyes fixated on the field.

Jiang Yin’s heart leapt into his throat.

However.

Li Wei was completely focused and undistracted, paying no attention to any other noise, with his attention fully on the task at hand as he caught the football and started moving.

Pushing off the ground, he stepped forward and accelerated.

Having just retreated from the wide receiver position to receive the ball, he now made his start, taking a step to the right, and immediately saw a figure blocking the slot—

Defensive End Brandon Graham.

The hero who had just made the game’s only sack, despite being nearly invisible for the rest of the game, but that one sack had fully fired up Graham’s confidence, now erupting with unbelievable energy.

Graham disregarded the offensive lineman entangled with him, throwing his entire body forward, using his weight and gravitational force to charge towards Li Wei, the burst of pressure and mass breaking the stalemate of the two linemen’s entanglement, piercing through like a wedge at full force.

Graham thought he had him.

Graham caught sight of Li Wei in his field of view and felt a surge of joy, preparing to reach out and tackle, but then he saw Li Wei step forward and suddenly accelerate without warning.

The combined forces of speed and power turned into a gust of wind.

Whoosh.

And in an instant, he was gone.

Graham lunged forward, joy and excitement still twinkling in his eyes, not yet having time to fade, and the next second he grasped at nothing, flying through the air.

What happened?

Li Wei had no time to concern himself with Graham; his speed was already fully unleashed, but he could not continue to break away, as he immediately saw Bradham with his arms spread wide open in the posture of a hawk capturing a chick.

Bradham was waiting, maintaining his patience, then seizing the opportunity, he lunged forward, aiming to collide with Li Wei’s approaching figure.

Just as Li Wei seemed poised to fall right into the arms of Bradham, at this critical juncture, he made an emergency stop as if he had anticipated it.

It was not a change of direction, but a turn.

With a splendid Marseille Turn, Li Wei spun 360 degrees clockwise, evading Bradham’s grasp and continuing his break from the inside.

Bradham’s forward lunge was too fierce; he was unable to stop himself on a dime and flew past, his mind filled with question marks, not caring about his own embarrassment, completely unaware of what had just happened.

However.

Bradham was no longer Li Wei’s problem, completely forgotten.

With the speed of lightning, Li Wei was aware of everything around him, his steps light and agile, and he burst forward, every second precious—

The middle route.

Li Wei chose to break through the middle, cutting into the Philadelphia Eagles’ soft underbelly like a sharp blade, his sudden burst of speed causing chaos in the Eagles’ defensive group.

The plan wasn’t supposed to be like this.

On the sidelines, Pederson moved briskly laterally, his arms swinging like windmills, and then one could see the Eagles’ defensive pocket tightened up.

How could the Philadelphia Eagles be unprepared?

Despite being ambushed by the Kansas City Chiefs, they were not surprised; the experience with the Pittsburgh Steelers was the best lesson.

After the brief shock, they reacted.

The pocket closes, an ambush from all sides, and in a flash, the Eagles’ defensive group formed an inescapable trap!

Clearly, Pederson was also prepared.