On fourth and one, the San Francisco 49ers decided to go for it. To avoid a false start and giving up a free first down, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defensive line and linebackers were a bit tense. You could smell the gunpowder in the air. But unexpectedly, Lu Ke didn’t do anything fancy. He did the opposite and quickly snapped the ball. This wasn’t a play-action to deceive them into a false start, but a real fourth-down attempt. The decision was incredibly firm.

In an instant, the Steelers’ front-line players missed the chance to charge forward, and for the first time, they were at a disadvantage in their confrontation with the offensive line, unable to put on effective pressure. Facing a fourth-down attempt, the 49ers had their first truly solid pocket protection of the entire game.

What was even more frightening was that on fourth and one, the 49ers didn’t choose to run the ball. Instead, they chose to pass, showing great confidence in their passing game. This once again put them a half-step ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers. The inside and outside linebackers didn’t step back; they rushed forward, blocking all of Marcus’s potential running routes.

So, the secondary defense fell into a one-on-one situation: Clark on Vernon, Gay on Ginn, Polamalu on Logan, and Ike on Williams. There were no other players helping with coverage or providing backup. It was a one-on-one situation, and it was the 49ers’ most perfect passing opportunity of the game. They could completely use their matchup advantage to complete the pass. But the problem was that Lu Ke couldn’t find a receiver.

To be more precise, none of the matchups were in the best position. Vernon hadn’t had time to turn around, and Clark had already blocked him. Logan and Polamalu were locking shoulders, neither with a clear advantage. It was a gamble. Williams was speeding up but was squeezed toward the sideline by Ike. Even if he made the catch, it would be invalid. Ginn was still running at full speed, with his back to Lu Ke, making a connection impossible.

“Damn it!” This was the only thought in Lu Ke’s mind. Under the Steelers’ suffocating defense, the offense had barely been able to breathe today. Now that they finally had the upper hand, they couldn’t seize the advantage in time. It was unbelievable. But it also showed the strength of their opponent’s defense. Even though their front-line defense had lost the initial advantage, their secondary defense didn’t let up. Especially on a fourth-down conversion, the Steelers had once again stepped up their game, and for the first time, they truly cut off the passing routes to all four receivers, showing the top-tier individual ability of the four secondary defenders.

So, without any hesitation, Lu Ke activated his special ability: “Falcon Eye.” This was the first time he had used this skill.

Immediately, the field in front of him became a three-dimensional space, divided into different quadrants by a grid of light-colored horizontal and vertical lines: front left, back left, front right, back right, front middle, and back middle. Within each quadrant, a grid of one-yard-by-one-yard squares marked out every coordinate, making every point incredibly clear and accurate, just like in “The Matrix,” where the entire world turned into a stream of data.

This was both math and physics. From one coordinate to another, it showed how to control the parabola, how to avoid obstacles, and how to reach the target in the most effective and reliable way. Everything was turned into a series of numbers, giving the most perfect answer in a cold and objective manner.

In his vision, five different passing routes appeared in an instant. A full five routes! Because Marcus Lynch also appeared in his sight. Each passing route was red, showing the direction of an arrow, marking the arc and the landing point of the parabola, starting from Lu Ke and pointing to the receiving position. As for whether Lu Ke could perfectly execute the pass and deliver the football to the right location according to the simulated parabola, that wasn’t included in the skill. Lu Ke had to execute it himself.

It was worth noting that the landing point of each passing route was currently unoccupied. In other words, the skill’s target prediction was based on a future movement. At the same time, a faint green line could be seen on each player, marking an arrow that was not as obvious as the red one. It pointed to the player’s next movement direction and position change in an unpredictable way.

However, the green lines and arrows in his vision were a bit dazzling. They not only marked the movement of the secondary defenders but also the predicted movement of the front-line defenders. In a short flash, the amount of information was a bit overwhelming. You could understand it this way: the skill predicted the next running routes of the receivers and the defenders, ensuring that a gap could be created at the landing point. But Lu Ke’s pass was not controlled by the system. The route was perfect, but the pass itself wasn’t, which also created more variables for a successful pass and put strict demands on Lu Ke’s passing control.

Obviously, the system had considered this. All five passing routes were red, but their brightness and shade were different. The most vivid and shining passing route was Marcus Lynch’s. It was a short pass of about three yards, close to the left side. There were no defenders nearby. After clearing the human wall of the offensive and defensive lines, it would be more than enough to convert the fourth down. But after completing the catch, the inside linebacker would immediately provide backup coverage and tackle him.

The most faint and blurry passing route was Logan Newman’s. It was a short pass of about ten yards, on the right side. He could never shake off the tight man-to-man coverage of Polamalu. Even if he could complete the catch, Polamalu would use his position to stop Logan from advancing further.

The choice of which passing route to take was up to the quarterback’s ability, control, mentality, and judgment. “Falcon Eye” truly lived up to its name and was even an incredible skill. In the face of the Steelers’ airtight, ironclad defense, it could still forcibly tear open four passing routes and provide a corresponding series of risk analyses, ensuring that the quarterback could make a judgment and complete the pass in the shortest amount of time.

All of this was just a flash of thought. If it were a quarterback with a hard time making decisions, they would probably hesitate, ponder, choose, and judge, which would cause them to miss the opportunity to complete the pass immediately. But fortunately, Lu Ke wasn’t. Standing in the pocket, he adjusted his steps with small shuffles, raised his hand, and completed the pass. The football rose high and steeply along a red parabola, then “whooshed” through the wind, flying toward the far end.

Lu Ke didn’t choose the safest and simplest option of Marcus. He was bold and arrogant, choosing a rainbow pass! Deep down, Lu Ke wasn’t a conservative person. He was not only courageous but also reckless. Even when facing a desperate fourth-down conversion, he still dared to take a risk, like a tango dancer on a tightrope, pushing the thrill to the extreme! At this moment, the strong wind, light rain, fine snow, and warm sun all became supporting actors, following the rotation of the football and soaring through the air!

Ted Ginn and William Gay were in a matchup. Ginn was a nimble and incredibly fast receiver, while Gay was a defender with good body control and precise tackling. Their height and weight were similar, so neither had an advantage or disadvantage in their physical matchup. They were almost evenly matched. Interestingly, both of them entered the league in the 2007 draft. Ginn was the ninth overall pick in the first round, while Gay was the 170th overall pick in the fifth round. But the two had different career paths after entering the league. Ginn had been floating around on special teams and only had his first career peak this year after being traded to the 49ers. Gay, on the other hand, had a smooth journey and became a starting cornerback for the Steelers in his second season, and he won Super Bowl XLIII with the team.

Today, the two of them were officially matched up on the field. If anyone was curious why Ginn was a first-rounder and Gay was a fifth-rounder, they could look at their 40-yard dash times. Ginn’s was 4.37 seconds, while Gay’s was 4.48 seconds. This was also reflected in their matchup today.

After the play started, Ginn began to accelerate, showing an incredible burst of speed. But Gay didn’t back down. He tightly held his position on Ginn and kept hitting him with his shoulder, squeezing Ginn’s running space. Ginn wasn’t affected much. He just accelerated and accelerated again, running at his absolute maximum speed. Five yards, they were side-by-side. Eight yards, Ginn was a quarter of a body length ahead. Eleven yards, the mismatch was already in place. Fourteen yards, Ginn had a step on Gay and quickly turned his head, looking for the football.

Step by step, little by little, Ginn was building his speed advantage and successfully gaining an advantage for the catch with his excellent form. At this moment, he had already entered the end zone. On the fourth and one play, the San Francisco 49ers were on the 14-yard line. There was a full 24 yards of passing space from the line of scrimmage to the end zone line. So, as soon as Ginn entered the end zone, he immediately looked up to find Lu Ke’s passing route. Sure enough, Ginn saw the football quickly falling toward the end zone. But before he could get excited, his pupils shrank. His brain quickly judged the space of the pass.

This was not a medium pass but a deep pass. It was about a 21-to-22-yard deep pass, and the final landing spot should be in the back of the end zone, close to the sideline, just inside the line. This meant that Ginn was still seven to eight yards away from the receiving position. He didn’t even have time to curse. His feet instinctively pushed off, and his entire body shot forward like a rocket again!

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep