“Good morning,” “What time did you get back last night?”, “You guys went to a bar last night and still have practice today?”, “I hope your legs aren’t too shaky today”…

All sorts of lighthearted jokes and banter floated past his ears with the breeze. He could almost smell the leather of a football, the fresh cut grass of the field, and a hint of the tranquility that precedes a new season. His heart couldn’t help but want to leap over the fence and enter the field on the other side, to witness where a miracle might be born.

Lu Ke retracted his gaze, slowed down, and focused on finding an open parking spot in the lot.

The San Francisco 49ers’ home field is Candlestick Park, and their training facility is on the other side of it, with beautiful and pleasant scenery.

The parking lot of a professional league’s training facility wasn’t like those Hollywood movies with luxury cars everywhere. A quick scan showed not a single luxury sports car. The nicest car was just a black BMW two-door coupe; most of the others were pickup trucks or SUVs. This was much more low-key than he had imagined.

After parking his car properly, Lu Ke grabbed his gear bag, left the parking lot, and asked two staff members for directions before easily finding the visiting locker room. After participating in several tryouts over the past three months, Lu Ke was already familiar with the whole process and no longer felt nervous.

It was 10 a.m. The team’s official practice had been going on for an hour, and after a series of warm-ups, they were about to begin position-specific drills. For the players there for a tryout, it was time to be evaluated and tested.

This was just another ordinary tryout, no different from the previous ones. It was still a chance to test a player’s ability, a competition between undrafted rookies and free agents, and a challenge filled with obstacles and difficulties. But this wasn’t just any tryout; this was a tryout with the San Francisco 49ers.

The 2011 NFL season preseason was set to begin next week. In their Friday game, the 49ers would travel to the Louisiana Superdome to play against the New Orleans Saints, officially kicking off their new season.

At this moment, most tryouts had already ended. In the final week, teams needed to further fine-tune their tactics and decide what to test and work on during the preseason. But at such a crucial time, Lu Ke received a tryout invitation from the San Francisco 49ers. Kip Christensen himself had made the call.

This was absolutely out of the ordinary. However, the 49ers’ actions were no secret. A quick search on any sports news website would reveal the reason on the front page:

The San Francisco 49ers’ starting quarterback, Alex Smith, had suffered a torn ACL during a preseason training session. After a consultation with the doctors, the initial diagnosis was that he would be out for at least six to eight weeks. His return would be further evaluated based on his recovery.

With less than six weeks until the official start of the season, this news was devastating!

After missing the playoffs for eight consecutive years, this offseason had been turbulent and difficult for the 49ers. The top management had made bold moves, firing the general manager, head coach, and starting quarterback, hoping to completely rebuild, rebound, and rise from the ashes.

As the number one pick in the 2005 draft, Alex had started fifty games in his first six seasons in the league, only winning nineteen of them. He never led the team to the playoffs. While he wasn’t a complete bust, his performance was far below expectations.

The quarterback’s arm strength was his biggest weakness. He had never had a season with more than twenty-three touchdowns, and his average passing yards per attempt was only 6.8 yards. He ranked last among all league quarterbacks in long-pass attempts, but he also had one of the lowest turnover rates.

It could be said that he was a steady quarterback with a conservative style and a stable passing game. However, his lack of medium and long passes meant he lacked the ability to make a fatal strike and to win a game on his own.

In the 2005 draft, the scouting report said, “Aaron Rodgers is a system quarterback, and the great running backs in college took a lot of pressure off of him. He usually runs screen passes and quick release plays, which avoids real contact and leaves the offensive line and wide receivers to get the job done. In contrast, Alex Smith was the one who led Utah to victory; he was the clutch player. I don’t believe Cal won because of Aaron Rodgers.”

So, the San Francisco 49ers, with the first pick, chose Alex Smith and missed out on Aaron Rodgers. Six years later, Rodgers won the Super Bowl, and the 49ers’ management finally lost patience. When his contract expired, they chose not to renew it and released Smith from the team.

Alex Smith became a free agent.

However, during the offseason, Alex still hadn’t found a new team. Instead, Jim Harbaugh and Trent Baalke discussed it and reached out to Alex, saying that the team would welcome him back whenever he was ready. After careful consideration, Alex chose to return to the 49ers, signing a one-year contract for only five million dollars.

In the draft, the 49ers selected quarterback Colin Kaepernick, and their intentions were clear. Alex was just a temporary quarterback. They needed to develop their new rookie, but they didn’t want to pay the same huge price as they did in 2005. So, they used a second-round pick and traded up to get a promising rookie.

But what was certain was that in the 2011 season, Alex would still be the 49ers’ starting quarterback, giving Colin enough time to grow. An experienced veteran like Alex would pass on his knowledge to the rookie, helping Colin quickly adapt to the pace and intensity of the professional league.

After all these twists and turns, the 49ers were united and ready to start the new season, but they had once again been hit with bad news. All their plans from the past three months were thrown out the window, and the coaching and management teams had to start working on a backup plan.

The main question was whether Alex would be out for six weeks, eight weeks, or even longer. If it was just six weeks, he would only miss the first game of the season, which wouldn’t have a big impact. But if it dragged on, the situation would be different.

So, should they be forced to put Colin Kaepernick in the starting quarterback position? Or should they find an experienced veteran from the free-agent market to be a fill-in?

However, one thing was certain: they had to find another backup quarterback. This would fill the gap left by Alex’s injury. If Alex’s injury healed in time, they could simply cut the backup quarterback and get back on track. But if Alex’s recovery took longer, they wouldn’t be in a difficult situation.

The tryout was born out of this situation: the San Francisco 49ers needed a replacement backup quarterback.

Such emergency situations are not uncommon in the highly physical game of football. Generally, teams prefer experienced veteran quarterbacks who can get on the field and adapt to the game’s rhythm at any time. Their performance might not be stunning, but they are at least seasoned and don’t need to be coached like a rookie.

As an undrafted rookie, Lu Ke knew his disadvantages, but he still seized this last opportunity and returned to San Francisco.

The only thing he could take comfort in was that the 49ers picked Colin in the draft because they wanted him to be the future cornerstone of the team. Even if they didn’t want to rush him, in this special situation, they were very likely to choose Colin as their starting quarterback. In that case, the chances of an undrafted rookie or a free agent getting a backup quarterback spot were equal.

Relax, relax, relax…

“Hey, Lu Ke.” A greeting came from the locker room. Lu Ke turned his head and saw a completely unexpected person. “Scott?”

Scott Tolzien was the quarterback for the Wisconsin Badgers and a friend he had met at the rookie training camp. After the training camp ended, Lu Ke lost contact with Scott, but today they met again at the 49ers’ tryout. Fate is truly a strange thing.

“Are you here for a tryout too?” Scott walked over and patted Lu Ke on the shoulder with a big smile. “Me too.” Lu Ke’s face showed surprise, and Scott smiled. “I’m an undrafted rookie too.”

In this year’s draft, twelve quarterbacks were selected, which meant that nine quarterbacks from the rookie training camp went undrafted.

Lu Ke laughed wryly. “Looks like our competition is going to continue today.”

Scott also smiled and walked out of the locker room with Lu Ke.

Not far away was the training field for the official 49ers players, where there was a constant hum of noise. But the tryout field was not there; it was on another field next door. So, the two of them reluctantly walked away. They didn’t say anything, but their eyes showed a similar envy and helplessness. They exchanged a look and both laughed.

“You know, there are a lot of free agents here today,” Scott said, who had arrived a little earlier than Lu Ke and had more information. “I just saw Matt Hasselbeck. I can’t believe it!”

Matt Hasselbeck entered the league in 1998. After three seasons with the Green Bay Packers, he was traded to the Seattle Seahawks, where he stayed for ten years, making him a true veteran of the league. He wasn’t a top-tier player, but he was above average.

Lu Ke’s eyes also widened, and he then showed a slight smile. “Looks like we have another tough battle today.”

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep