In America, the winner takes all.

Chapter 315 Playoffs (3)

"At the beginning of this season, no one would have thought that these two teams would be standing in the playoff divisional games. The 49ers were questioned due to their aging players, and at least three players in the team said that this would be their last. One season later, as for the Cowboys, they weren't in much better shape, plagued by injuries last season and there was some doubt as to whether Troy Aikman could hold up."

"It turns out that people's suspicions were correct. During the regular season, Troy Aikman missed many games due to a recurrence of his head injury. After returning to the team, his condition still declined. In addition to the quarterback position, currently, Two of the Cowboys' wide receivers also left the game due to medical reasons."

"Fortunately, they have Ethan O'Connor this year. This extremely talented young man has used his amazing performance to bring the Cowboys back to life again and again. I think other than God's blessing, I can't summarize this in other words." Phenomenon……"

The commentators for this game were not the golden pair of Maddon and Pat, but Dick Stockton and Matt Millen, among whom Matt Millen was also considered an old friend of Ethan.

Players from the Cowboys and 49ers entered the field one after another, and when the players began to adapt to the final field, the DCC formed a 6×6 square and jumped into the field amidst cheerful music.

At this time, Ethan was also on the field, not even ten yards away from the group of girls. As he stood closer, he realized that each DCC team member's leg-raising, waving, jumping and other movements were uniform and looked like they were carved out of the same mold. There is almost no error, and such uniform movements are naturally attributed to the rigorous training in daily life.

The bright and sunny smile, the iconic blue and white uniform and white leather boots, the blue and silver bouquet, the round and fit figure, and the curly hair that danced with the jump, under Ethan's gaze, it turned out that The square-shaped array became lined up. The DCC players put their arms around each other and hugged the teammates around them. In the rhythm, they first raised their legs high, then placed them horizontally on the waist of the teammate on the right, then lowered their bodies one by one, and finally Hit the ground hard with a volley split.

Although everyone still had the iconic smile on their face, Ethan felt a little distressed, not only for the team members, but also for Kelsey. If there is a chance tonight, he must check Kelsey's body to see if she is okay. Redness, swelling and bruises etc...

"Kelsey!"

"Kelsey!"

Ethan heard the audience shouting Kelsey's name.

After the performance, the DCC members stood up and quickly left the venue. Kelsey looked in the direction of Ethan, and as if she had made some determination, she stamped her feet and came to Ethan in the opposite direction.

"Come on, my dear, no matter what, you will always be the best player in my heart." Kelsey looked at Ethan, whom she hadn't seen for more than a week. The thoughts of the past few days came to her heart, and her nose felt sour. I almost couldn't help but want to hug Ethan.

Ethan nodded to her to express comfort, and hugged Kelsey again in front of tens of thousands of spectators.

In the box.

"I thought it was you who looked down on others, but it turns out that others looked down on you. Sister, compared to the young and beautiful DCC, it is completely understandable that you failed."

Jones Sr.'s youngest son, Jerry Jones Jr., who is currently in charge of merchandising and legal affairs, couldn't help but joked when he saw this scene on the playing field.

"Bullshit! I just don't want to pay attention to Ethan." Charlotte Jones cursed in a low voice, and even couldn't help spitting out swear words.

"Why do I think it's because he doesn't want to pay attention to you?" The younger brother said with a smile.

"You don't understand even after I tell you." Charlotte's face was uncertain, and her eyes were almost murderous.

And not far from her, Catherine, who was also in the box, couldn't help but feel a little dumb...

"I think it's more appropriate for the 49ers to attack first." Ethan returned to the sidelines and said to head coach Dave Campo.

If the 49ers start the first half, then the Cowboys will attack first at the beginning of the third quarter.

In this crucial battle, in which both sides are well prepared and watched by tens of millions of fans, attacking first in the first half is not necessarily an advantage.

"That's true, but how can you guarantee that the Cowboys lose the coin guessing round?" Dave Campo couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah, how can someone keep losing the coin toss?" Ethan was also confused.

Then he took the initiative to go to the coin tossing area.

"The referee of this game is Jerry McBrett. He has officiated four Super Bowl games. Today's game will be the end of his refereeing career. At the end of this season, he will Officially retired." The stadium host's voice echoed over the audience.

Half a minute later, Dave Campo saw Ethan turn around and gave him a yes gesture.

"Weird luck." Dave couldn't help but muttered when he saw Ethan walking off the field.

It’s not like he really has God’s help, right?

In fact, the Cowboys had surprisingly good luck in this game.

Ethan returned to the field and watched the 49ers' first offense. Stephen Young seemed to test the Cowboys' defensive strength. After receiving the pass from the center, he immediately handed the ball to running back Garrison Hurst behind him.

This running back left a deep impression on Ethan in the last game, especially his three consecutive runs, which pushed the front line forward thirty yards despite heavy blocks from the Green Bay Packers.

In the regular season this season, he managed to run 1 yards with his long legs, and his score was actually higher than Emmitt Smith.

Before the game, he was the focus of Dave Campo's research.

It can be said that even the Cowboys did not expect that this seemingly inconspicuous first run would have a chain reaction that would affect the entire game...

I saw Garrison Hurst choose to break through from the middle. After continuous dodging, he crossed the line of scrimmage under the cover of the full defender, and then relied on a flexible turn to go around from the side. In just a few seconds, Gained five yards in time.

At this time, several nearby Cowboys defensive players came to their senses, and instantly formed a double-team situation.

Seeing that all routes have been blocked, running back Garrison Hurst can only bite the bullet and rush towards the middle, and what he needs to face is the Cowboys' middle linebacker.

Although at the moment of contact, Garrison Hurst deftly used several fake moves to shake the linebacker back a step, but when he was about to break through, the linebacker sank down and suddenly stretched out his foot. The running back had no time to jump again at this time, and his whole body was blocked, and then his body fell down uncontrollably.

The defensive tackle behind him had no time to brake at this time and pressed heavily on the back of the running back.

The ankle was caught, another force was applied to his back, and under the pressure of the already existing forward inertia, Garrison Hurst felt a heartbreaking pain in his ankle.

When he collapsed completely, he never stood up again.

Through the slow-motion playback, Ethan clearly saw that Garrison Hurst's ankle had deformed at the moment he fell to the ground, which was similar to his own injury.

At least, it takes a year to recuperate.

The game was forced to be suspended just as it started. Everyone on the Cowboys looked at Garrison Hurst being carried onto the golf cart. Although they said words like, "I hope he gets better soon," they actually felt in their hearts. Already happy.

"I finally know why you can become the best running back in the league." Ethan turned his head and couldn't help but take a closer look at his teammate Emmitt Smith.

"Because I almost never get hurt." Emmett answered with a smile.

This is certainly not his luck. In fact, in order to achieve this goal, Emmett has a set of action habits that are different from other running backs. It took him three full years to fully adapt to the reversal of this habit. In return, he Every time he falls to the ground he tries to protect himself from serious injury.

But even so, Amit Smith was not full attendance, such as last season.

Looking at the entire league, how many running backs can do what Emmett does? Under the pressure of performance and the expectations of the coach, they have to run desperately again and again in order to stay on the field, but it often backfires. This may be the paradox of running backs.

On the field, the 49ers' offensive team certainly didn't look good.

Stephen Young, who was wearing a red "sf" mark, couldn't help but look at the head coach on the sidelines at this time.

The expressions of both of them were somewhat stiff.

A series of running ball tactics prepared before the game are now unavailable, and the 49ers can only try more aerial attacks...

·

After the main running back came off the field, the 49ers' first round of offense seemed quite unsatisfactory, and they had no choice but to punt.

Cowboys returner Chris Warren played well and returned to the 61-yard line, but the Cowboys' offensive team did not achieve the desired results despite being heavily surrounded by the 49ers.

Ethan passed the ball to two receivers, but neither of them was successful. In the third gear, he passed the ball directly to Emmitt Smith, who only rushed for three yards before being forced to brake. The 49ers defense The intensity is evident.

Ethan feels that this may be the toughest defensive team they have encountered so far.

Especially the defensive end Chris, although the opponent's age has already passed his prime, his strength makes Ethan quite afraid.

In the last game, Chris had a wonderful performance of intercepting passes, which made Ethan even more afraid to be careless.

The Cowboys soon followed the 49ers' lead and chose to punt.

"The defense is often the strongest at the beginning of the game, and this is the same for the Cowboys. Don't be frustrated, it won't be long before you can find a breakthrough from them." Dave Campo chose to say to Ethan who returned to the field. comfort.

What Dave Campo said was not wrong. The 49ers still failed to make timely adjustments. The second round of offense was also difficult to penetrate the Cowboys' defense, and finally chose to punt again.

But this time, the Cowboys' returner ran a relatively rare route. After receiving the ball, he actually got out of the gap and rushed forward nearly fifty yards to return the ball. The line drew directly to the 49ers' 36-yard line.

The scene was ignited by this shuttle run like a swimming dragon, and the players off the field also felt happy from the sky.

This means that the Cowboys only need to gain 36 yards to directly complete the touchdown.

And Ethan would never let such a good opportunity slip through his fingers.

Before forming the formation, Ethan thought for a long time.

He now has three options, pass the ball to Emmitt Smith, run the ball himself, or pass the ball to Patrick and directly try to pass the touchdown.

Other options are not good enough in Ethan's opinion.

After thinking about it, Ethan decided to pass the ball to Emmitt Smith first.

The 49ers even called a timeout in order to resist the attack. It seemed that they were preparing to determine a special defensive lineup.

While lining up, Ethan noticed that the 49ers had chosen a defensive strategy of four linebackers and three forwards, obviously preparing to defend against the run.

Before the kickoff, running back Emmitt ran back and forth to attract the attention of the opponent's players. On the 49ers side, there was also a player who kept his eyes on Emmitt and followed him.

The game officially resumed. Ethan received the short serve from the center, then quickly turned around and stepped back. At the same time, Emmett also stretched out his hands to catch Ethan's ball.

Unfortunately, Ethan had no intention of giving the ball to him.

Another temporary change of tactics?

Emmett was stunned for a moment, then without any hesitation, he continued running as if he had got the ball.

Having been teammates with Ethan for so long, Emmett also knows Ethan's habits.

This kid often overturns the agreed-upon tactics after kick-off.

For the vast majority of quarterbacks, this is a very foolish move.

But Ethan is different. He can often achieve good results after temporarily changing his tactics.

Emmett felt that as long as the front line could advance smoothly, it didn't matter whether he could get the ball or not.

Obviously, Ethan discovered an important oversight in the 49ers defensive lineup the moment he received the ball...

What Emmett was thinking was not wrong. The moment Ethan turned around, he immediately saw four linebackers coming to double-team him and Emmett from two directions.

Obviously, the 49ers thought the Cowboys would run the ball, so they adopted a targeted strategy, and this time the 49ers did win the bet.

If other quarterbacks encountered this situation, they would probably give the ball to the running back. After all, the ball has already been given to the running back, and it has nothing to do with them.

But Ethan obviously doesn't think so. It's not that he prefers taking risks. This is the result of Ethan's series of judgments.

Even if the Cowboys fail this time, there are still at least two attempts.

The risk is small, the profit is large, and the tactics can be changed.

These thoughts were actually completed in an instant. At this time, Ethan had just finished turning around when he saw four linebackers and defensive ends coming towards him. Chris, who had been in contact before, took the lead, and fullback Darry You can only slow down the opponent's pace slightly.

But for Ethan, this slight delay was enough.

There are risks in any defensive tactic. The space covered by each player is only so large, and clustering in a small area will inevitably expose more gaps on the defensive end.

Ethan habitually looked towards his eleven o'clock position, where Billy should have been standing, but now it was another unfamiliar face, the substitute slot receiver Jeff Ogden.

Ethan had quick eyesight and quick hands, and he had already thrown the ball before the defensive team approached.

When the football was released, it was powerful and heavy. With a special arc that only belonged to Ethan, it flew towards the position where the slot receiver was standing like a full-moon scimitar.

At this time, there was only one cornerback beside the slot receiver. As soon as he saw the pass, he began to search for the landing point, but found that the Cowboys' substitute slot receiver was slightly outside the expected landing point, diagonally. Rush forward.

Can't you even make such a basic judgment on where to start?

The cornerback felt lucky. So what if it was Ethan O'Connor? Would he still be intercepted?

The next moment, the expression on the cornerback's face turned into astonishment. It was as if a strange strong wind suddenly appeared in the field, blowing the rugby, causing the rugby to quickly deviate from its original route during flight, draw a special arc, and be firmly caught by the slot receiver.

Before the cornerback could react, the Cowboys' slot receiver was already running wild.

Unfortunately, rookie wide receiver Jeff Ogden is not very fast. The moment he was about to enter the zone, he was directly knocked out by the defensive safety guard who was outflanking him.

Until it was all over, the cornerback was still frozen in place.

He had raised his head at this time, observing whether there were any holes in the field.

He really couldn't explain where the strange wind came from.

"Idiot, what on earth are you doing?"

It wasn't until he heard the head coach sternly cursing that he finally came to his senses, shook his head and returned to the line.

"RW McQuites, the corner who played well in the last game and had a key interception, seemed to have gone into a brief trance. Maybe he was thinking about whether there would be his favorite dish for tonight's celebration banquet." Matt Mi Lun made a witty joke.

It seemed to him that the corner position seemed to have been cast under a enchantment spell, and his reaction was very strange.

And as the live replay appeared, Matt Millen finally understood the real reason for his unconscious reaction.

"This is the front view of Ethan's pass just now...wait, how come this ball has such a weird arc?" Matt Millen couldn't believe his eyes.

The replay angle at this time is a shot near the 49ers formation. Only from this angle can we fully see that the football flew in an extremely outrageous spiral arc after it left Ethan's hand.

"It's hard for me to explain the reason for this arc. The football is like a plane made of paper. The only thing that can be confirmed is that Ethan used special movements when passing the ball..." Matt Mirren was puzzled.

At the edge of the field, the 49ers couldn't help but open their mouths as they watched the replay. They really couldn't figure out how the ball was passed.

The one who suffered the greatest impact was Stephen Young. He had repeatedly replayed and watched Ethan's elevator pass. The rapid descent was already weird. He even practiced it in private, but his own movements It was set, and Stephen Young had to give up.

Today, Ethan has obviously taken a step further. On the basis of the original, he has once again improved his passing technique, turning the original rapid fall into an erratic lateral transfer like falling leaves.

You must know that for wide receivers and corner positions, it is particularly important to determine where the ball will land.

And this kind of passing corner does not know where the landing point is at all, which will allow the outside receiver to easily receive the ball and complete the breakthrough, greatly enhancing the passing success rate.

Obviously, this is an epoch-making pass. Compared with the previous elevator pass, the range of applications is greatly increased.

Standing not far from Stephen Young, 49ers coach Steve Mariucci's face was ashen.

Before, the running back leaving the field due to injury was a disaster for the 49ers, and now Ethan has used this special passing technique again... Although He didn't want to admit it, he knew that the 49ers might become Ethan's "throne". A stepping stone.

As a coach, he knows the huge strategic value of this kind of passing.

After this game, every NFL quarterback will try to use this pass.

From now on, there will be two eras of quarterbacks!

"Shit! Is he really perfect?"

On the sidelines, Ethan's head coach Dave Campo was also in chaos.

I was obviously just making up random things to divert Ethan's attention, but I didn't expect this kid to actually learn this kind of pass? !

Are you a human being?

You won't notify me after practice?

"Ahem." Head coach Dave Campo cleared his throat.

Finding that the team members were still looking at Ethan blankly, they couldn't help but say, "How do you know it was me who taught Ethan how to pass the ball like this?"

"No kidding," offensive coach Hudson Houck said, shaking his head.

"If you teach Ethan to use this pass, the Lombardi Trophy will have to be renamed the Dave Campo Trophy."

In the box.

Old Jones, who was talking to his friends, couldn't help but rub his eyes. He once wondered if he had seen it wrong.

But the repeated replays on the big screen let him know that all this was not an illusion.

This kind of flight path is actually very common in football matches, commonly known as the "Full Moon Scimitar", but this is not the case in rugby. It is closely related to the internal and external materials and the shape of the ball. The elasticity of rugby is not as elastic as that of football. It is sufficient, and it is still spindle-shaped. The most important thing is that the power of the hands cannot be compared to the legs. All things considered, it is more difficult to throw a similar arc with football than with football.

"Oh, fuckingshit!" Charlotte grabbed her brother's shoulders and shook him. At this moment, I even forgot most of my resentment towards Ethan.

in the venue.

"Ethan, how did you do that?" Emmett said in a daze as he backed away as Ethan walked over.

How did I do it? good question.

If I knew, I would explain it to you without hesitation.

The issue is.

I don’t even know how the ball was thrown just now!

Although Dave told himself a brand new pass in a joking tone, Ethan knew that it was a fool and didn't take it seriously at all.

Ethan had a premonition that something bad was going to happen when he took off the ball. He didn't hold on to the football before it was released, which resulted in the point of force being completely different from before.

I originally thought this was a huge mistake, but I didn't expect that it was a mistake, and it created a special arc that Ethan himself had not foreseen.

The most outrageous thing is that his teammates misjudged the landing point, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

"Just practice more." Ethan nodded and said seriously.

Emmett didn't know how to reply for a moment, so he could only nod blankly.

"I see."

Ethan was very satisfied with his obedient teammates, and the two walked to the 49ers' two-yard line together.

Although there was a pass that was terrifying enough to change the entire football passing logic, except for a few professionals, the 70 spectators at the scene did not realize that they had witnessed history, and they were still advancing for the Cowboys. The 262ers cheered at the two-yard line.

Off the court, Ethan's pass has begun to ferment...

The audience cheered and cheered, but Ethan didn't dare to be careless.

During the meeting, Ethan discussed with his teammates, and they all agreed that the one-yard arch tactic was the most effective.

When the game resumed, everyone rushed forward like a hungry tiger pouncing on food, and the rush after another was quite spectacular.

"Dong dong dong dong..." The impact of the protective gear made a series of sounds.

At this time, Ethan, who was holding the ball, jumped high and rushed into the crowd.

"Crash..." All the 49ers were rushed away by the huge flow of people, staggering and falling.

Ethan fell down in front of the end zone. Although he did not completely enter the end zone, the football he was holding firmly with both hands was completely placed in the end zone. According to the rules of rugby, this of course counts as a touchdown.

The kicker easily kicked the ball in.

The Cowboys lead 7-0.

In the rest of the first quarter, the 49ers, who were missing their key running back, still failed to find a breakthrough direction. They attacked three times in a row and failed to get the first attack. Although they got the first attack of the new round in the fourth attack, But it only advanced to half-time before being forced to stop.

At this moment, the game has entered the second quarter. Under Ethan's steady passing strategy, the Cowboys advanced a full 82 yards in eight attacks.

Although Ethan is still unable to replicate the pass that he just had a flash of inspiration, the previous rigorous training played a role in this moment.

In the end, the Cowboys scored another touchdown with Emmitt Smith's long run.

With the PAT making steady free throws, the Cowboys' advantage has now expanded to 14-0.

Seeing that there was not much time left before halftime, some Cowboys fans even started celebrating at the scene. One can imagine the pressure on the 49ers.

Even Stephen Young's movements were a little stagnant.

If he was still full of confidence before the game started, then with the 49ers' main running back leaving the field due to injury and Ethan's shocking pass, his confidence index instantly dropped to negative...

Stephen Young saw the time and quickly threw the ball to backup running back Terry Kirby.

This was a temporary decision made by Stephen Young based on the situation on the scene, and the substitute running back did not react immediately and had to rush to catch the ball. The football fell directly from the opponent's hands and rolled on the ground.

"Drop the ball!"

Almost every player on the field rushed towards the football.

In a tight and continuous scramble, the football bounced right back to the Cowboys defensive tackle.

Faced with God's gift, he happily accepted it, stood up straight, and rushed directly into the 49ers' zone with the cover of his teammates.

Another touchdown! Ethan was even celebrating with his teammates on the sidelines. What was expected to be a difficult battle turned out to be so easy.

But soon, the Cowboys' celebration was interrupted by referee Jerry Mackbret's whistle.

"The touchdown is invalid! Touch the ground before returning to attack." The referee made the corresponding gesture.

In the replay, Ethan could see his teammate. Before getting the ball, another teammate had already touched the ground with his knee. His catch and subsequent touchdown were not established at all.

Even this dropped ball seemed to be problematic. The first point where the ball landed was re-judged. All in all, the 49ers escaped death and actually regained the ball.

And this time the 49ers finally didn't waste any more opportunities.

At the 62-yard line, Stephen Young successfully handed the ball to the team's Chuck Levy with a 34-yard long pass, which was regarded as a response to Ethan's long pass just today.

Then Stephen Young passed the ball to tight end Clark, who scored a touchdown in the previous game. In this game, he was still in great shape, and once again helped the 49ers advance 9 yards by receiving the ball.

In the next offense, the 49ers' classic attack combination that had not appeared for a long time began to exert force. After Jerry Rice got the ball at the 49-yard position, he quickly changed directions and easily shook off three Cowboys players. Helped the ers regain a victory.

The score became 14-7.

Compared with 21-0, this score was not enough for the Cowboys to seal the victory.

In the next round of offense, Ethan tried to repeat the falling leaf pass just now, but the football he shot this time was not only at a straight angle, but also at a slow speed, which was the worst one from Ethan.

The 49ers defender took the lead and intercepted the ball in front of the slot receiver. Although the Cowboys players reacted quickly and only allowed him to return four yards, the ball returned to the 49ers.

At this time, it was only 36 yards away from the Cowboys' zone.

Dave Campo also urgently called a timeout in the first half to discuss the defensive strategy for this offense.

Just like the 49ers, Dave Campo also judged the tactics the 49ers will use next. After all, the 49ers' main running back is no longer available, and the backup running back cannot take on the big role. Stephen Young can only choose to pass the ball.

Targeted by the Cowboys, Stephen Young failed two consecutive passes, and the third time he only advanced the front line by 6 yards.

The 49ers did not choose to play hard, they directly called a free kick and recovered three points.

14-10, the game entered the midfield session.

During halftime, in addition to arranging the normal tactics for the second half, Dave Campo was still asking Ethan how he passed the ball. Obviously, that pass is still fresh in the memory not only of Dave Campo, but also of the entire coaching staff.

"Regarding this issue... let's talk about how the 49ers will change their tactics in the second half." Ethan said with lingering fear, not changing the topic.

The 49ers did make a lot of adjustments at halftime in the last game. They looked like two completely different teams in the first and second half.

Sure enough, entering the third quarter, not only did Ethan not get any benefits from the 49ers, but offensively, the 49ers also had a small climax and advanced all the way to the Cowboys' three-yard line.

If the 49ers can score a touchdown this time, they will directly overtake the score...

(End of this chapter)