Dominate the Super Bowl

JJ Watt had said not to underestimate Li Wei, the rookie was genuinely talented, and if one were to dismiss him due to the media's portrayal, they would surely be at a disadvantage.

In light of this, TJ Watt firmly remembered and remained vigilant throughout the game.

And now—

Li Wei as a reception point?

Watt was startled by his own thought, a chill running from the soles of his feet up to his head, sending tingles down his spine.

Through the season so far, in all six games, Li Wei had never appeared as a Wide Receiver; he was the starting running back, the most powerful ground attacking output for Kansas City Chiefs; even though the second running back, Hunter, as a Wide Receiver, had shown some spectacular performances, Li Wei had not done so even once.

So much so, that now, after Watt made his judgment, his first reaction was still to reject it.

How could that be!

In such a crucial game, at such a key offensive moment, a play that could decide the outcome, and it's a Wanfu Mary, yet Reed was choosing Li Wei as the pass target?

If Li Wei were a smoke bomb, meant to disrupt the focus, Watt might find it more believable; but here was the issue, Li Wei hadn't started off with the other receivers, which severely limited the functionality of this smoke bomb.

Furthermore, looking around—

The Pittsburgh Steelers weren't paying any attention to Li Wei, or perhaps they had noticed him, but each of them had assignments, their focus entirely on the end zone, eyes all on Wanfu Mary, so much so that they had no capacity to ponder why Li Wei was there.

The other reception points, including Hunter, were all closely guarded by their counterparts, even safety Mitchell was quickly closing in on Kelsey, ensuring a numerical advantage near the tight end.

But Li Wei wasn't.

Li Wei, within a ten-yard perimeter, shockingly had no Steelers players in sight, completely unmarked.

Watt didn't have time to hesitate— at this moment, only he and another safety, Davis, were free, Davis was charging towards the end zone, and originally so was he, but now, Watt had changed his mind.

Everything, in the blink of an eye.

Without hesitation, Watt had already changed his direction, charging towards Li Wei.

Even though Li Wei wasn't carrying the ball, Watt didn't relax, completely tensed up.

Not far off, some players from the Steelers' defensive group soon noticed—

Mitchell: This rookie!

Hilton: It's still a lack of experience.

At this moment, they shouldn't be distracted; their most important task was to guard key players such as Kelsey and Hill; secondly, to block the end zone, by securing these two crucial points, the defensive group would have the advantage no matter how Smith tried Wanfu Mary.

Initially, Tomlin was worried that Reed might opt for a mid-pass, trying to push for a field goal range to clinch the game with a field goal; but with the Chiefs lining up in the Shotgun Formation from the start, all receivers were pushing forward at full speed, aiming for a deep breakthrough.

The Steelers' defensive group naturally responded to the varied offensive plays with steadfast man-to-man coverage, they shouldn't easily lose their positions.

Watt, after all, was still too young.

Twelve seconds.

As time continued to pass, the air around the stadium almost solidified, with the offensive and defensive sides positioned in different corners of the field for their standoffs.

Thousands upon thousands of gazes, all resting on Smith's shoulders.

Backpedaling, lateral movement, repositioning—Smith's footwork in the pocket was fundamentally solid; with Hayward faced with blocks and unable to exert effective pressure, Smith's feet lightly shuffled as he moved.

And he was observing.

Smith had earned a full five seconds, which for the Chiefs, who typically controlled passing times within two seconds, and considered it slow beyond three seconds, was beyond imagination in pocket holding time.

Then—

Smith threw the ball.

Particularly because Smith's observation time in the pocket had visibly overrun and given Hill was charging like a fast horse toward the end zone, the Steelers' defensive group had completely focused their attention on Hill.

Pushing off, twisting his body, swinging his arm.

Like an archer shooting an arrow, the football flew from Smith's hand, tracing a beautiful chestnut-red parabola across the field.

Indeed.

The entire Arrowhead Stadium gasped in unison and then held its breath.

Bart's heart soared along with the parabolic trajectory of the football, almost bursting out of his throat, and then he froze—

Huh?

Damn, damn, damn!

This was a thirty-five-yard pass.

A long pass, still technically a long pass, but look at the current situation: a thirty-five-yard pass was merely crossing midfield, and there was still a very, very long way to the end zone, completely disrupting the anticipated play.

Almost everyone thought this was going to be a Wanfu Mary, at least over fifty yards, aiming for the red zone or even the end zone, with all of the Pittsburgh Steelers' defenders quickly backtracking, already hovering before the red zone; but then Smith threw a thirty-five-yard "long pass," and it was clear now:

The entire central field was completely vacant.

In a moment, the Steelers' defensive group was thrown into disarray.

No worries, no need to panic or make a fuss, just rally and encircle, settling into the defensive net.

However, just as the defensive players were about to start, the offensive group suddenly stopped and turned, one by one switching roles, acting as defenders, starting to block and intercept, disrupting the initial reaction of the Steelers' defenders—

The situation reversed.

Ten seconds.

Everyone's gaze was fixed on the center of the field.

"Li Wei VS Watt."

Who would have thought, Watt, accidentally guessing Reed's strategy correctly, was spot on, and now all hopes rested on Watt.

The face-off between two first-round rookies.

Watt was speeding up.

Clearly, Watt too was fooled; he thought this was a deep long pass. Knowing Li Wei's speed, he didn't stick close immediately but instead kept a slight distance, not planning to disrupt the catch but to wait for Li Wei to catch and then tackle him.

Again, plans were disrupted.

A slightly shorter long pass found Li Wei ahead of time, meaning Watt needed to step up earlier, or he would miss the chance to tackle. Stay updated with My Virtual Library Empire

A sudden shift.

Li Wei still wasn't quite adept at catching.

Being able to catch in practice is one thing, but catching under pressure in an actual game, especially during a clutch Wanfu Mary moment, required more precise timing and positioning.

Moving forward, he turned around.

Li Wei, sidestepping, next moment spotted Smith's dart throw heading fast toward his shoulder when he was expecting about thirty yards, but it was actually around thirty-five yards.

Just five yards difference, and everything else was spot-on, but the receiving point was off: the football's trajectory was slightly high, and while Li Wei was ready to catch at his chest, it now had to be at his shoulder.

Awkward.

In a flash, Li Wei couldn't hesitate anymore.

Turning around, the step he took while rushing toward the end zone transformed into steps of retreating back towards the end zone, his body facing the football, hands swiftly picking and embracing the perfectly thrown dart into his chest.

Next, was to turn around again and continue dashing towards the end zone.

However, as he had only turned halfway and his body hadn't fully pivoted, a peripheral glimpse caught a figure pouncing fiercely toward him.

It was Watt.

Everything happened too quickly, Li Wei had no time to adjust further, so he simply abandoned turning around, his back muscles tensed up, bracing for the collision.

Bang!

Collision, tackle, two behemoths firmly collided together.

Watt: Tackle, complete!