Super Bowl Domination

Chapter 299 Dazzled
Oakland Raiders defensive end No. 52 Khalil Mack was the league's best defensive player last season and is currently the most dominant defensive end in the league after JJ Watt was ruled out for the season. He is a nightmare for any team's quarterback and running back.

The Oakland Raiders use a "3-4" defensive formation. Logically, such a formation tends to have fewer raids, but the team's head coach Del Rio is a linebacker by profession, so he is slightly different.

Del Rio is very good at reading offensive formations and often chooses to take the initiative, even with only three defensive fronts, and frequently uses linebackers or cornerbacks to step up to sack the quarterback.

It is precisely because of this that Mark is able to give full play to his advantages, relying on his strength and speed to break the balance and disrupt the attack in the confrontation on the front line.

Unfortunately, in the last home game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Mark himself was in mediocre condition, and his biggest helper, linebacker NaVorro-Bowman, had some minor injuries, which also led to poor performance, so they were unable to effectively stop their opponents.

This time they are ready for the next battle.

Bowman has been playing for the San Francisco 2010ers since 49. He is a four-time All-American and three-time Pro Bowl selection. He is undoubtedly an experienced veteran. He has been plagued by injuries this season, so he transferred in the middle of the season and joined the Oakland Raiders to add some strength to them.

Mark believes that after running-in and cooperation, the combination of him and Bauman is gradually showing its power.

He can't wait any longer.

Push the ground, push the ground, accumulating energy like starting a motorcycle engine, ready to start at any time.

"attack!"

Smith called the game.

Mark started immediately, facing his opponent, the offensive tackle Eric Fisher.

This player who was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs with the first pick in 2013 is not a dud. He does often have decent performances, but compared to the position of the No. pick, he is far from satisfactory. He has not won any honors in his career so far and is forgotten among the crowd.

Mark knows Fisher very well and has gained experience from the four encounters in the past two seasons.

Right at the start, Mark ran head-on into Fisher, without any dodging or skill, simply using his body to eat him alive, because he knew that Fisher was a bit bulky, and once he had the speed advantage and was stuck in position, Fisher could only use his body to take the blame, and it would be difficult for him to use skills to entangle his opponent.

At the same time, Mark quickly glanced ahead:
Smith. Levi.

Mark noticed the movements between Smith and Levi immediately. In the turbulence of the physical confrontation, Mark's eyes never moved.

Running the ball?

No, fake run and real pass.

Mark made an accurate judgment and slammed into Fisher's arms. Then, using Fisher's body as support, he pressed all of his 269 pounds (122 kilograms) on Fisher. Fisher tried to grab Mark but couldn't find a point of force, so Mark got rid of him with a clockwise rotation.

Very easy.

Unless Fisher committed a foul, Mark would be impossible to catch.

Generally speaking, players of Mark's weight, especially forwards, have more strength than speed and low agility, and tend to be slow.

But not Mark.

He stood on tiptoe and got around Fisher like a bee, completely ignoring Fisher's hands that slapped his shoulders in his second reaction. He cut into the pocket along Fisher's body and then saw Levi.

——Break the block.

Levi didn't dodge, but instead took the initiative to bump into him, which also verified Mark's judgment:

This is fake running and real passing.

The Kansas City Chiefs cleverly used Levi as bait in this passing tactic. As the season progresses, other teams are now prepared and are no longer as easily fooled as they were in the first half of the season.

Mark tried to get rid of Levi and kept his eyes fixed on Smith who was adjusting his steps in the pocket and looking for a pass target.

Oops.

Mark quickly glanced behind him on the left side with the corner of his eyes. It was just a quick glance, so he couldn't see any specific situation at all, but the key point was:

nobody.

There were no Chiefs or Raiders players in the short pass area behind Mark, which meant that Smith was ready to sneak in with a long or medium pass.

Unexpectedly, this really caught the Oakland Raiders off guard. With full preparation and a well-planned layout, Smith dared to make a long pass, and the success rate was always guaranteed - steady is Smith's middle name. Although he didn't have the ability to run 50 or 60 yards, 30 or 40 yards was still easy to catch, and Reed was ready to create a contrast.

Mark was shocked.

With one step forward, Mark made full use of his physical advantage and used a heavy impact to crush Levi. He pushed Levi away unreasonably and rushed forward resolutely. In an instant, he had already shaken Levi off.

Hit fly.

Mark was concentrating so much that he didn't even look at Levi. Even though Levi was the top rising star of this year's rookie draft, he was still a green rookie in Mark's eyes. He opened his arms and surrounded Smith like an eagle catching chicks.

Wait, Smith was not panicking, instead he had a calmness that lured the enemy deeper.

Mark:? Something, is wrong.

The next second, Smith dodged slightly, avoiding the area covered by Mark's hands, and pushed the football out from the side. The football flew around Mark's body like a boomerang.

Mark took a breath.

Damn!

The fake run and real pass were correct, but the pass targets were all misjudged.

This pass was almost an upgraded version of the Kansas City Chiefs' buzzer-beater against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Mark: Damn it.

Actually. I got fooled.

Actually!

But it was too late. By the time Mark realized he had been fooled, the Oakland Raiders defense also realized they had fallen into a trap.

Close the net!

Generally speaking, this is used by the defense to surround the wide receiver and form a blockade; but now, all the Kansas City Chiefs' receivers have shaken off their own defenders and moved toward the midfield to form a protective net.

Escort Levi.

After all, this was not the same offense that won the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Oakland Raiders defense made one mistake after another and was completely panicked and led by the nose.

So, what about Levi?

Levi walked lightly across the line of scrimmage and caught the football with a sideways turn.

The movements are still being adapted and need to be adjusted, but the route running is obviously much smoother. The pause, turn, and push off the ground are a series of smooth movements. After completing the catch, he runs along the route immediately.

Cooperation, everything is cooperation.

Levi stepped diagonally to the left, cut into the midfield, and then he could see inside linebacker Bowman.

Although the veteran's condition declined due to injuries and he was traded to the Oakland Raiders by the San Francisco 49ers, his experience still played an important role. He realized something was wrong at the first time and stepped up to fill the position in time.

With one stride, Bowman stood in the way of Levi cutting across midfield and into the protective net that the Kansas City Chiefs had built for him, with his arms outstretched like a crab.

Bauman was highly focused because he knew Levi's ability to change direction.

Left. Right. Left.

Wait, no, there is a fourth change of direction: right.

Bauman, keep up!

(End of this chapter)