Dominate the Super Bowl

Chapter 630: 629 The Cost of Growth Chapter 630: 629 The Cost of Growth Calm and resolute, composed and confident.

Li Wei remained true to himself, not covering up the peace or turning a blind eye, but facing defeat openly and honorably.

Mahomes looked into Li Wei’s eyes, momentarily stunned, then could no longer control himself, tears breached, embittered, both frustrated and angry, he frantically wiped his tears with the back of his hand, nodding in disarray, his words muffled.

“I will remember.

I will.”

Logic was not difficult, but to truly experience such a painful defeat required time, especially for the young Mahomes.

From taking over the quarterback position under immense pressure to continuously proving himself with astonishing performances up to the peak of confidence only to be struck brutally unawares, this adventurous growth journey was fraught with thorns.

Although Mahomes tried to rally quickly, it was ultimately too difficult; his cheeks buried in the palms of his hands, visibly sweating and flushed, the bitterness and pain piercing to the core.

Sometimes, Li Wei couldn’t help but wonder which was more despairing—losing a game by a large score without seeing any opportunity, or missing out on victory at the last second when the chance was still there—

There was no answer.

Li Wei took a deep breath.

“Do you remember the saying we always mention?”

“We embrace victory together as a team, and we face defeat together as a team.”

On the surface, Mahomes’s interception indeed seemed the final turning point of the failure; however, until the very last moment, the Defensive Group, the Special Duty Group still had a chance to rein things in, at least to win an overtime opportunity for the Kansas City Chiefs—

Including that one block that grazed his fingertips.

Yet, they failed to seize it.

For the first time, Li Wei deeply realized the significance of the first lesson on Football that Burns taught him—

Football, a team sport, lacking any element might fail to secure victory; although all eyes are often on the quarterback, every other position has its value and significance.

“Not one less.”

Those were Burns’s exact words.

So, for victories, they shouldn’t deem it only their own doing; similarly, for failures, they shouldn’t see it as just one element being out of place.

“We had opportunities, from the first second of the game until the last, consistently so.”

“Sherlock, as our quarterback, you should understand the importance of having an overview—win or lose is not just about one mistake or one detail, we need to look at the whole picture, in a team-oriented manner, or else, the next time we meet, the outcome may not change.”

“We shouldn’t dwell on past details, what if this and what if that, it would be endless, driving ourselves mad; we should focus on the whole picture, we should look forward to the future.”

“Hey, it’s just a regular game, aren’t you looking forward to our next meeting?”

The Kansas City Chiefs and the New England Patriots won’t have another chance to face each other in regular season; if there is another confrontation this season, it would be the playoffs—

Single elimination.

A single phrase made Mahomes lift his head once again, his cheeks flushed, but the fighting spirit in his eyes had reignited.

Although this game had just concluded, Mahomes was already eagerly anticipating the next encounter with the New England Patriots.

Ambition surged in his chest.

Li Wei flashed a smile—

Anger and sadness, these were good things, as they proved he cared, but he couldn’t remain trapped in these emotions.

They needed to transform these feelings into the motivation to keep moving forward and the spirit to confront issues positively.

Li Wei knew this was enough, the rest he left to time.

Li Wei stood up and reached out his right hand to Mahomes.

Mahomes grabbed Li Wei’s right hand and stood up too.

Li Wei had nothing more to say, he patted Mahomes’s shoulder and was ready to turn around.

Other players in the team still immersed in their emotions needed to be cheered up, but his steps weren’t taken before being tripped up by a cacophony of sounds—

From the stands, right behind the rest area of the Kansas City Chiefs.

Specifically, those dirty, ugly, unbearable words had never actually ceased, tirelessly continuing from the start to the end of the game, and after Gostkowski’s game-winning kick, they reached a new peak.

In football, there was nothing as rampant or excessive as the hooliganism in the British Isles, but given the intensity of such a confrontational game, the fans’ savagery and violence were unavoidable.

Especially in recent years, as the economic crisis swept across North America, with high unemployment persisting, the poorer people became, the more restless and depressed, the angrier they got, and they unleashed all these negative emotions at the stadium.

It was the same right now.

The New England region has never welcomed “outsiders,” and it was undoubtedly one of the most seriously afflicted and worst areas for discrimination in North America.

Last season, Gillette Stadium had given Li Wei a good exposure, but the Kansas City Chiefs had twice shut them up with victories and left unscathed.

Tonight!

Finally!

Gillette Stadium finally got its moment of glory, turning the tide and even causing Brady to lose his composure, an uncommon sight even in a regular game as he celebrated the victory by running half a lap around the field, stirring up the atmosphere among all the fans, to say nothing of the fans themselves.

The repressed, controlled emotions were fully released.

This time, they added a new target—

Mahomes.

Mahomes was biracial, with a black father and a white mother, so his situation was quite unique.

The black community thought he wasn’t black enough, and the white community thought he wasn’t white enough, landing him in an awkward position.

In the Rookie Training Camp, the media had once provoked Mahomes by questioning his self-identity.

Although the NFL is becoming increasingly inclusive, overall, black quarterbacks are still a minority, especially after the “Four Great Running Backs,” a new generation of mobile quarterbacks, struggled with injuries.

In the past couple of years, Wentz and Goff had again become the media darlings, which made Mahomes’s situation indeed quite special.

Regarding this, Mahomes responded that he was very proud to be black; but he always believed that as a football player, one ultimately needs to let their performance on the field do the talking, and it wouldn’t change due to skin color.

Additionally, since Mahomes was a substitute last season, he hadn’t attracted much attention, and the scrutiny surrounding him had ultimately still been minimal.

Until tonight.

In New England, just like Li Wei, Mahomes was a minority, constantly facing a full-on assault from Gillette Stadium throughout the game; and it peaked after the New England Patriots snatched victory with a last-second win.

Those filthy, unbearable words poured down like a torrential rain.

Regarding this, Li Wei didn’t want to bother, because there was no need to argue with a bunch of ants, treating them like a pack of barking stray dogs was enough; but not wanting to mind and not being able to mind were two different things, and when the stray dogs weren’t satisfied with just barking and eventually lost control and lunged, Li Wei would not surrender without a fight.

Those voices, sensing Mahomes’s vulnerability, then bared their fangs—

“Mutant!”

Someone shouted.