People in America: My Uncle Don Quixote

Chapter 451 I lost the match, but I didn't lose (Seeking monthly votes)

"That's still much worse than Levi," Troy said without hesitation. "But the problem is, the Giants don't have Levi this year."

"Speaking of the Giants," Joe Buck said, "this season is very special for them. Levi is off for three years, which means the Giants have lost the absolute core of last season's incredible undefeated season."

"That's right," Troy nodded. "But John Mara made some pretty aggressive additions during the offseason. They signed veteran Gerrard at quarterback, he's 35 and won't make any big mistakes. On defense, they re-signed Lawrence and added two rookies, taking the overall framework to the next level."

"But then again," he analyzed, "without Levi, the Giants are completely different from last season. This season, I think they'll make the playoffs, not win the championship."

"Speaking of which, Coach Dapol might be making tactical adjustments this time," Joe Buck picked up the thread. "Let's see how the Giants deal with Kroos next."

After the timeout ended, the Giants' formation was suddenly changed in the Colts' box.

With an additional cornerback on the defensive line, the formation has contracted, changing from an obtuse triangle to an acute triangle.

It seems that Dapol's coach has a clear strategy: they want to force Kroos's sprint routes to the lateral direction, trying to make him run more to the sides and prevent him from playing deep.

Meanwhile, the offense also began to adjust, with the Giants' new quarterback Gerald Winslow starting to use a lot of short passes to constantly run down the clock.

"That's beautiful," Joe Buck said excitedly. "The Giants used the same tactics that the Kansas City Chiefs used against them last season, and now they're using them against the Colts. Let's see how the Colts respond."

"Shameless!" Inside the private box, the manager of the Pony team spat. "They're deliberately trying to wear down Cross's stamina."

“It’s fine,” David Sterling said confidently. “Let them drag it out. The plan we’ve devised for the subject is enough to keep him going the whole time.”

For the next two quarters, the game turned into a back-and-forth battle.

The Giants take 35 seconds to complete each attack, receiving the ball with a short pass and immediately going down to the ground, without taking any risks.

The defense, on the other hand, prevented Kroos from accelerating by moving laterally and double-teaming him, or forced him to keep running and breaking through, with at least three or four people surrounding him each time.

At halftime, the score was 14-10, with the Colts in the lead.

Commentator Joe Buck noticed something was wrong when he saw the statistics: "The data shows that Kroos had 15 possessions in the first half, rushed for 142 yards, and had 2 touchdowns, but his second touchdown was only 12 yards, and his sprint speed has clearly declined."

"That shows the difference between him and Levi," Troy said, shaking his head. "His stamina is far inferior to Levi's. Look at how he's panting now. He was panting for at least 30 seconds at the end of the second quarter, with his hands on his knees."

The same problem was also found in the VIP box of the Little Horse team.

"What's going on?" one shareholder asked David Sterling. "Wasn't it said that the subjects could play the entire game?"

"That's how it was in our tests," David Sterling said, "but it was his first real game, so he might have been a little nervous, and didn't you notice the Giants used a specific tactical approach?"

He paused, then added, "It seems we need to adjust our tactics and focus more on Kroos."

The manager of the Colts team nodded after hearing this: "I will discuss this with the head coach after the game."

David Sterling's assistant saw what Irving Cross was doing, thought for a moment, walked to a corner, took out his phone, and sent a message to the team doctor.

He originally planned to report this news as a merit, but now it seems that this is no longer an option.

His credit has become a hidden threat, and he needs to find a scapegoat first.

"I just saw this message," he replied. "I'm not responsible for this. You need to report it to the sports lab, and they will compile and report it to me."

He kicked the ball towards the sports lab.

This news was clearly a bombshell, and the failure to report it in a timely manner was obviously a problem.

At this point, passing the buck becomes very important. David Sterling certainly won't personally ask a junior team doctor about the injection; he'll only ask why this happened.

At this point, the assistant could conveniently shift the blame to the sports lab, since they were responsible for monitoring and evaluating Irving Cross's physical performance.

Even if an investigation is launched, the people in the sports testing lab will be the ones who suffer; that's the way of the workplace.

After closing his phone, he looked down at the court below the box, at Irving Cross, and lamented that he had paid such a high price, only to not get the desired result. What was the point?

Owen Cross was extremely agitated and frustrated; his anger was practically bursting out of his skull.

Unfortunately, his anger did little to alleviate the lactic acid buildup in his body or the pounding in his heart.

He looked at the court, not understanding why he had paid such a high price, his testicles had permanently shrunk to the size of peanuts, he had signed a very unequal player salary agreement, and he had undergone such cruel drug trials, yet he still couldn't beat a person of Asian descent?

He was clearly much bigger than Li Wei, and his physical strength was at its peak. He also claimed to have received far more drug injections than Li Wei.

Moreover, I've heard that Li Wei never goes to the gym, which means he almost never trains.

In addition to his medication regimen, Irving Cross also spends three hours a day training in the gym.

But why is it that Li Wei is still better than him in terms of teacher, money, physical strength, bird size, achievements, and performance in competitions?

Irving Cross found this completely unacceptable.

But there's nothing we can do if we can't accept it.

He could only watch helplessly as his physical strength waned and his power waned, and he was gradually overtaken by others, consumed by impotent rage.

In the third quarter, the Giants' new quarterback, relying on the veteran's awareness and taking advantage of Cross's declining stamina, led the Giants to two touchdowns, making the score 24-21 and taking the lead.

In the fourth quarter, Kroos almost became a different person.

His sprints were no longer powerful, his changes of direction were no longer deceptive, and his reactions after receiving the ball were even much slower.

The Giants' defense no longer considers him a threat, and without Irving Cross's threat, the Giants' overall strength is far superior to the Colts. Thanks to the $3000 million extra salary cap that Levi secured, the Giants can recruit players who are much stronger than the Colts.

Ultimately, with 30 seconds left in the game, Irving Kroos chose to make one last sprint with the ball.

Dexter Lawrence came up to him head-on, but this time, he was like a wall, pinning Kroos to the spot. Then, a second and a third defender followed, slamming Kroos and the ball onto the grass.

The Giants regained possession and held on for the final 30 seconds before the game ended.

The New York Giants won 27-21.

The more than 80000 New York Giants fans in the stadium rose to their feet and cheered, their roars deafening.

"Giants! Giants! Giants!"

Joe Buck excitedly shouted, "As expected of the Giants! They devised a targeted strategy just one minute into the game! Their seasoned experience taught the Colts a harsh lesson. Owen Cross, you're still a long way from replicating Levi's miracle—"

'

Before the narrator could finish speaking, David Sterling turned off the TV.

Silence fell over the private room.

"Why is this happening?" David Sterling looked at the half-empty bottle of champagne on the table. "How could his stamina drop so quickly? Even with targeted tactics, his stamina shouldn't be declining this fast."

The others didn't know how to start a conversation, so they just remained silent.

David Sterling looked at the pale yellow champagne in his glass and suddenly felt nauseous.

He waved his hand irritably, stood up, took several deep breaths, and turned to his assistant: "Investigate the cause," he said, "Why is this happening?"

The assistant stepped forward at the opportune moment: "I just asked the sports lab, and they said that the subject was emotionally unstable before the competition and injected himself with another dose of the drug, which caused him to explode with more power than expected in the first two quarters, but reduced his muscle endurance."

David Sterling nodded, smiling at everyone: "That's good, that's the reason."

Seeing that the other shareholders' expressions weren't too good, the manager of the Colts team tried to salvage the situation, saying, "Things will get better once the official season starts and we reorganize the team."

One shareholder said quietly, "Don't forget, Sterling, Eli Lilly and we have a performance-based agreement. A $98 billion cash takeover of the Colts is a huge sum. If we can't achieve sufficient results this season..."

'

David Sterling nodded, his expression calm: "I know, I'm very confident in our new drug and our plans."

At the post-match press conference, Coach Dapol sat on the stage and, without hesitation, gave the credit to Li Wei when faced with reporters' questions.

"The tactical adjustment was Levi's suggestion," he shrugged. "After seeing Irving Cross's offense from the box, he immediately made us change our tactics."

The reporters stirred for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Although Li Wei is no longer on the field, his story still circulates there," a reporter said with a smile.

Meanwhile, at the Colts' press conference, Kroos sat in front of the microphone, looking very upset.

The side effects of the medication made his temples throb with pain, and coupled with his bad mood after losing the game, he had to work very hard to suppress the urge to lose his temper and overturn the table.

"What was it like playing your first game on the NFL stage?" a reporter asked. "How would you rate your first game? How did it compare to the NCAA?"

Cross frowned deeply and said, "I think I've done a very good job."

"How would you rate the Colts' first major setback since being acquired?" a blonde reporter asked. "Before the game, you said a lot of trash talk about the Giants, but you didn't deliver on any of it. How do you feel now?"

"This is a team matter, you understand?" Kroos couldn't help but shout. "We lost the game, but I didn't lose!"

The reporters were shocked by his words.

"70 sprint yards for a touchdown in one minute, two touchdowns in the first half, and over 142 sprint yards," he said. "How many rookies can do that in their rookie season?"

"I am the best NFL player," he tapped the table, "and when the official season starts, you will see a completely different Irving Cross."

After saying that, without waiting for the reporters to ask further questions, he stood up and left the press conference while it was in progress, amidst the surprised looks of the reporters, teammates, and coaches.

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