Super Bowl Domination

Chapter 997 Slap someone in the face
"Levi, the lowest point in your career?"

"Four carries for nineteen yards. Levi's preseason ends here."

"Not doing his job, not paying attention, Levi's magic finally faded?"

"The Kansas City Chiefs' locker room problems can no longer be swept under the rug."

"The defending champions lost all four preseason games. Who should be held responsible for the defeat?"

"The Kansas City Chiefs have completely lost their way and the defending champions are in a bad state."

"Levi, are you able to shoulder the responsibility of helping the Kansas Chief break out of his cocoon and become a butterfly?"

Criticism, criticism, and more criticism.

It was overwhelming and even intensified, bringing a sudden storm to the entire alliance.

The focus returned to Levi again.

This is the Internet age.

News crazes often do not last long. Lak's heavy retirement was only a hot topic for three days before people lost interest and waited for the next focus.

Just then, Levi stumbled into the door.

In the fourth week of the preseason, the Kansas City Chiefs traveled to challenge the Green Bay Packers.

This time, Levi finally made his debut, but he did not partner with Mahomes, but cooperated with the backup quarterback, and in the end he only played one offensive game.

Four carries for nineteen yards.

Strictly speaking, the performance was not bad, averaging 4.75 yards per carry, which is far above the average level of the league's running backs; but obviously this could not satisfy the needs of the media and fans.

Most importantly, the Kansas City Chiefs lost to the Green Bay Packers.

"20:27".

The Green Bay Packers won with a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Although everyone knows that there is no need to pay too much attention to the results of preseason games, the Kansas City Chiefs' preseason performance in the past two seasons was also average.

But losing is losing, there is no need to quibble; and the hopes and expectations of the two-time defending champions are sky-high, so the situation is naturally different -

How is it possible that they lost all four battles?

True insiders can see that the Kansas City Chiefs are establishing a completely new tactical system, and the chaos in the preseason is obvious.

This situation is rare.

The Kansas City Chiefs have won the Super Bowl for two consecutive years, which proves that the team is on the right track. Rather than making major changes that would cause major setbacks, team managers tend to prefer maintaining the status quo and continuing their advantage.

This is common sense and also inertia.

However, in the NFL, the existence of a hard salary cap forces team managers to adjust their layout; the two-time defending champions face even greater challenges.

At this moment, we can see Reed's determination and Vic's courage.

After assessing the overall situation, they realized that adjustment was necessary, and after risk assessment and overall planning, they showed decisiveness.

The most obvious thing is the purge of the entire defensive coaching team.

Indeed, the Kansas City Chiefs can continue to play with this defensive lineup for one or two seasons, but the pressure on the offensive team cannot be relieved until the problems of the defensive team are solved.

While the combination of Mahomes and Levy has become the focus of analysis and deconstruction in the league, the Kansas City Chiefs must take the long view and stay ahead of their competitors.

Even if the price is a major overhaul this offseason.

At least in the eyes of Reid and Veach, they can continue to trust Mahomes and Levi in ​​the next season and rely on the offensive team to lead the team forward; so they took the opportunity to transform the defensive team and prepare for a rainy day.

So, this offseason, the Kansas City Chiefs made adjustments from top to bottom.

A direct result is that the "3-4" defensive formation used in the past few seasons was adjusted to a "4-3" formation during the offseason.

That is four defensive linemen and three linebackers.

After the departure of Houston and Ford, two starting linebackers, to the Kansas City Chiefs, new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo decided to rebuild the entire defensive front.

Spagnuolo is also a member of Reid's coaching tree. His first job after entering the professional league from college in 1999 was as an assistant defensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles. He came to prominence because of his outstanding performance with the Philadelphia Eagles. He later served as the head coach of the St. Louis Rams for three seasons, and also held coaching positions with the New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens and New Orleans Saints.

Last season, Spagnuolo served as an intern head coach for the New York Giants. This offseason, the New York Giants decided to hire a new head coach, and Spagnuolo responded to Enschrieder's call and joined Kansas City.

Don't underestimate the changes on the defensive front. This is not just a change in the defensive front and linebackers. The strategies and tactics of the defensive second line also need to change, which is equivalent to the tactical manual of the entire defensive team needing to be overturned and started over.

Moreover, there have been changes in every position on the Kansas City Chiefs' defense, and all starting positions in the new season are open to competition, so everyone has a chance.

It is conceivable that the Kansas City Chiefs' defense still lacks coordination.

Not only that, Reid also did not ignore the offensive group, because he knew that the offensive group would become the subject of study for the entire league. If the team did not seek change, it would soon hit a wall in the new season.

So, the chaos of the preseason is obvious——

Reed is always trying different permutations.

Because of this, main players rarely appear on the field, and even if they do, they try out new combinations and new tactics, which is very experimental.

As a result, this scene appeared.

Game 1, Cincinnati Bengals, lost.

In the second game, the San Francisco 49ers lost.

Game 3, Pittsburgh Steelers, lost.

Game 4, Green Bay Packers, lost.

Although the reasons and processes were different, the outcome was the same: all four games were lost and the preseason was completely lost.

This was indeed unexpected.

The defending champions seem to be struggling particularly hard during this offseason, losing their way and completely losing the magic that brought them to the top of the league in the past two seasons.

Shocked! Stunned! Unexpected!

So, whose responsibility is it?

It's the same with all team sports; when the team loses, someone has to take responsibility.

In football and basketball games, it is often the head coach who takes the blame. The same is true in rugby, where the head coach bears great responsibility and enormous pressure.

But that's not always the case, there are occasional exceptions.

Blame the quarterback, blame the defense, or blame the team's biggest star.

"Levi, you are running out of ideas."

"The hustle and bustle outside the stadium eventually made Kansas City Chiefs No. 23 lose his way."

"Being so busy on the fashion runway that he forgot how to run with the ball, Levi's new season is worrying."

"The second Beckham? Levi lost his magic in the glitz and glamour of Vanity Fair."

"Levi: Next stop, free fall off a cliff?"

To take pleasure in someone else's misfortune and to add insult to injury.

The media started to mock the group. The frustration and embarrassment that Levi complained about a week ago can finally be redeemed now, and no reporter is showing any mercy.

Even the onlookers felt it.

They didn't understand what was going on between Levi and the reporters, but they could feel that the reporters were pushing their firepower to the extreme one by one -

Indiscriminate bombing.

It is hard to imagine how Levi survived in the midst of the massive artillery fire.

Then, on social networks, a senior professional football reporter dropped a bombshell, without warning, silently, but incredibly.

Comparable to Lak’s retirement.

"Kansas City Chiefs and running back Levi reach final agreement on contract extension."

A slap came whistling, catching me off guard.

(End of this chapter)