Chapter 392: Pulling Himself Together

Chapter 392: Chapter 389: Pulling Himself Together

Getting intercepted on his second pass after taking the field was obviously not a good start.

Strictly speaking, the interception wasn’t Lu Ke’s direct fault. Williams tipped the football but couldn’t make the catch, and the altered trajectory led to the interception. From an objective standpoint, however, Lu Ke’s pass itself had been off-target, which was why his connection with Williams failed and created the opportunity for the turnover.

So, it was still Lu Ke’s fault.

Lu Ke’s first career interception had been due to Vernon Davis’s butterfingers; Davis had made the catch, only to have the ball knocked loose before an opponent picked it off. The blame hadn’t been on Lu Ke—it was more an issue with Vernon’s ball security. But today, Lu Ke couldn’t shirk responsibility for this interception.

Standing right where he was, Lu Ke planted his hands on his hips and began to seriously analyze his read of the defense and his decision on the throw, searching for his mistake.

To be honest, before the game, Lu Ke had indeed thought about this as a revenge game. If the Washington Redskins hadn’t been so indecisive during the draft, his career might have taken a completely different path. Deep down, Lu Ke still hoped to prove himself to Mike Shanahan. After all, their conversation back at the Rookie Training Camp had truly given him a sliver of hope.

To say he hadn’t thought about “revenge” at all would be lying to himself.

But once the game began, Lu Ke completely cleared his mind, pushing all distracting thoughts aside.

This ability could be called a talent, or it could be called a habit. A quarterback has to think about and observe far too many things on the field; the slightest distraction could lead to a complete loss of control.

This was especially true for the high-school-era Lu Ke. With his small frame, a slight lapse in concentration could mean a sack or a hard hit, and his body simply couldn’t take too much of a beating. To protect himself, and learning from painful experience, Lu Ke had to force himself to concentrate on the game.

Over time, just by standing on the field, Lu Ke would enter a state of complete immersion, losing himself entirely in the game. In a way, perhaps this was the key to Lu Ke’s success in the pros—or at least one of the keys. His path of growth, step by step, had made him who he was today.

So, a revenge game was the furthest thing from his mind. He was completely focused on reviewing the last play.

Evidently, after eight weeks of the regular season, opponents had developed a certain understanding of his passing lanes and throwing habits and were starting to deploy targeted defenses. On that last pass, though the pressure from the Defense Line wasn’t intense, several defenders had suddenly extended their arms, seeming to have perfectly timed his passing lane.

To avoid those arms, he had slightly altered the ball’s trajectory at the moment of release. He hadn’t expected to fall right into the opponent’s trap, causing the pass to deviate from its intended line.

The correct play would have been to throw it with a higher arc, just enough to clear the defenders’ arms and fingertips. Or he could have moved his feet, adjusted the passing lane, and fired a bullet pass to break through their coverage.

In that split second, his thought process hadn’t been thorough enough, and it led to the interception. Even if it hadn’t been picked off, it still would have been an incomplete pass.

In future games, defenders would get smarter, studying his patterns and tendencies. As a quarterback, he had to be even smarter and stay one step ahead of them. Deep down, Lu Ke clenched his fist. ‘I need to spend more time studying game film after this week’s game ends.’

“Bambi, you okay?” Mike Lupati approached Lu Ke, who seemed to be in a daze. He patted Lu Ke’s arm worriedly and offered some comfort. “It was just a fluke. Accidents are bound to happen in a game. Don’t take it to heart. Focus on the next drive. That’s the right move.”

This was only Lu Ke’s second interception of the season. Lupati was worried that Lu Ke was taking the mistake too hard.

Lu Ke, however, didn’t understand. He blinked. “I’m fine, I’m great. What’s wrong, are you not?” The question back at him left Lupati stunned. Lu Ke then patted Lupati on the shoulder. “Let’s go. We have to clear the field and get ready for the next drive. We’ll get the advantage back.”

Not only was he not dejected, he was actually encouraging Lupati. With that, Lu Ke jogged off the field.

Lupati, trailing behind, was completely bewildered. ‘What just happened?’

After Lu Ke got to the sideline, Kip Kester, Craig Roman, and others came up to pat him on the shoulder, offering comfort and encouragement. But Lu Ke paid it no mind.

He knew interceptions were just part of the game. Even for an elite quarterback, they were unavoidable. Besides, the record for most interceptions in a rookie season was still held by Peyton Manning—Lu Ke’s idol—and that hadn’t stopped Manning from becoming one of the top quarterbacks in the Alliance.

Since he wasn’t bothered, he was completely baffled by everyone’s unusual reactions.

It wasn’t until Alex Smith himself explained, “Don’t worry too much about that interception. It wasn’t a mistake with the play call. Just be a little more careful next time.”

Lu Ke finally understood and couldn’t help but laugh. He started to explain, but seeing all the concerned eyes around him, he ultimately swallowed his words, deciding not to refuse his teammates’ and coaches’ goodwill. “Okay, I get it. Don’t worry, I’ll get my head back in the game.”

He clenched his fist hard, putting on a show of getting his spirits back up, hoping to rally his teammates’ focus at the same time.

…

The interception created a turnover, and the Washington Redskins would start their drive on the San Francisco 49ers’ 37-yard line. For the Redskins, this was undoubtedly an excellent opportunity. Just one first down would get them into field goal range; anything more would be a prime chance for a touchdown.

Carrying the hopes and attention of the entire stadium, Rex Grossman led the Redskins’ offense onto the field.

A determined Grossman refused to waste such a golden opportunity. After taking the field, he calmly surveyed the scene, and from within a chaotic pocket, he coolly completed a pass to wide receiver Anthony Armstrong.

Despite being in double coverage, Armstrong relied on his natural athletic talent, leaping high to pluck the football from over the two defenders’ heads. He firmly secured possession as he fell to the ground. The catch was good for a fourteen-yard gain, bringing the Redskins to the 23-yard line in a single play.

This spectacular pass and catch reminded everyone of their dominant performance in the first four weeks of the regular season, earning a roar of cheers from the crowd and showcasing the formidable power of their home-field advantage.

Riding this momentum, Grossman displayed an impressive level of passing on the subsequent plays. He attempted three consecutive short passes, completing two and failing one, and picked up a first down thanks to his wide receiver’s yards after the catch. In the blink of an eye, the Redskins had already broken into the red zone.

Finally, Grossman handed the ball off to the running back. This year’s rookie, a fourth-round pick at 105th overall, Roy Helu, found a sliver of a gap and rushed for eight yards, successfully entering the end zone for a touchdown!

After the pain of being shut out last week, the Washington Redskins were the first to score a touchdown in this game, completely shaking off their slump. It wasn’t just Helu, the running back who scored; quarterback Grossman also clenched his fists and roared in celebration, cathartically releasing his pent-up frustration.

It seemed the pressure of the so-called “revenge game” was weighing even more heavily on Grossman than on Lu Ke and Shanahan, the two main parties involved.

The home fans at FedEx Field went into a frenzy. The Washington Redskins’ home jerseys are burgundy, a shade deeper than the San Francisco 49ers’ red. At this moment, the stands were a vast sea of burgundy. Inside this stadium, which could hold eighty-two thousand people, you could deeply feel the “hostility” from the home fans.

However, the wave of celebration lasted less than a minute before coming to an abrupt halt.

Because the Washington Redskins’ kicker, Graham Gano, actually missed the extra point.

The extra point, which should have been a gimme, was unbelievably missed by Gano! Facing intense pressure from the San Francisco 49ers’ special teams, the Redskins’ front line was shaky and on the verge of collapse. Then a 49ers player could be seen raising his hands high to block the kick, forcing Gano to slightly alter the angle of his approach.

And then… that was it. The football sailed wide of the uprights. Just like that, the extra point was gone.

It was unbelievable, but things like that do happen in football.

The success rate for extra points is nearly one hundred percent, but it’s not actually one hundred percent. Someone always makes a mistake, especially at a critical moment in a key game. In incredibly close and tense matchups, it’s not at all rare for a team to lose a game over a single missed extra point.

Sometimes, that single point can be magnified to an infinite degree.

The score on the field was now 6-0, with the Washington Redskins in the lead.

The home fans were stunned, unable to believe their own special teams had made such a blunder. Their dumbfounded astonishment was beyond description, but they didn’t have much time for frustration and anger, because Lu Ke was leading the San Francisco 49ers’ offense back onto the field.

And so, the fans temporarily spared the kicker who had made the mistake and turned their attention to the opponent. The stadium erupted in a chorus of boos and jeers. Contemptuous and provocative glares could be seen everywhere. They were doing everything in their power to create a greater home-field advantage for their team and more obstacles for the visitors. The tsunami of boos was deafening, coming from all directions at once.

Unfortunately for them, it had a minimal effect on Lu Ke.