Chapter 1049: Lure the snake out of its hole
Second gear. Third gear.
Tangled, anxious, and the entire offensive and defensive confrontation was in pieces, the Kansas City Chiefs stumbled through the half and lingered near the 43-yard line.
At this point, we were once again stuck in a third-and-five-yard dilemma.
Then, without warning, the Baltimore Ravens changed. After all, the game time kept ticking and they couldn't afford to wait.
However, the so-called variations also hide secrets. Hubble pulled magic from his sleeves and the Baltimore Ravens defense also showed its attitude.
Variation does not mean surprise.
Harper knows Mahomes' ability, and the risk of a sudden sack is too great. If Mahomes is not sacked, it may become an opportunity for Mahomes to make a fatal long pass; they do not need to insist on frontline confrontation. Duel it out, and don't forget the Baltimore Ravens tradition:
linebacker.
Although the departures of Ray Lewis and Suggs led the Baltimore Ravens to change their entire defensive framework, the team's heritage was still intact.
In this wave of offense and defense, the Baltimore Ravens only used basic three-man pressure, with the three defensive fronts maintaining confrontation. The linebackers assumed a posture of stepping up to pass the ball, but they feinted and scattered non-stop——< br>
The two linebackers posted Watkins and Hardman respectively, and the two linebackers showed a zone defense attitude.
Matchup defense and zone defense!
This is Hubble's variation, tightening the pass defense completely without warning.
Two linebackers and two cornerbacks are responsible for guarding, and the other two linebackers and two safeties are responsible for zone defense. The entire pass defense sets up a dragnet to intercept all Mahomes' passing targets.
And, this is just the first step.
This is a trap. The Baltimore Ravens deliberately gave Mahomes enough room to move. They unexpectedly withdrew the defensive front line that had always maintained pressure. They immediately blocked Mahomes's short pass possibility, and then made it airtight. Block the possibility of Mahomes' intermediate and long passes.
So, what’s next for Mahomes?
All of this is actually to lure the snake out of its hole. Hubble's real purpose is to take the next step. The first step is to create chaos and change the rhythm. The second step is to break the balance and turn the guests around.
Linebacker Judon, all focused.
On the surface, he is moving in the short passing area. Wherever Mahomes passes the ball, he will go to cover. This is a typical zone defense strategy.
In fact, his eyes are firmly fixed on Mahomes - not Levi. This is another change in Hubble's entire defensive tactics. When people have been accustomed to believe that Judon's main task tonight is to assist Ferguson. When guarding Levi, Hubble chose to take a risk.
Naturally, Hubble will not miss the biggest loophole in the entire defensive strategy: Levi.
After all four receivers rushed out, the Kansas Chiefs still had a fifth receiver hidden, Levi.
Mahomes can completely pass the football to Levi in the absence of a passing target, and Levi will break through.
To that end, the Baltimore Ravens put on a show.
Judon and Ferguson still targeted Levi, and after Lee maintained the ball, the zone defense network immediately tightened. They did not forget the existence of last season's regular season MVP.
But in fact, Hubble is preparing to make a time difference. When Mahomes relaxes his vigilance and gets into trouble, Judon will complete the fatal blow.
Whether it's a surprise attack, an effective rush, or forcing Mahomes to take a hasty shot, Judon must break the Kansas Chiefs' rhythm.
Once Mahomes is in trouble, Hubble believes that Mahomes' knee-jerk reaction should be to look for Levi, and their subsequent trap will give Levi an unforgettable experience.
Link by link, Hubble is indeed showing the essence of the Baltimore Ravens. On the surface, it looks like a frontcourt press, but in fact it is a covert attempt to lure the snake out of its hole. The real fatal blow is still hidden behind.
If this is true on paper, the Baltimore Ravens' defensive strategy does have holes, and the Kansas City Chiefs will always find a way to break it.
But it's not.
In an ever-changing game, the Baltimore Ravens have been patiently waiting and looking for opportunities, and then without warning, calculated deliberately and unintentionally. The defense has taken advantage.
Mahomes: No pressure, free air, happiness comes so suddenly; eh, wait, no passing target, no gap at all.
Everything happened in just one or two seconds.
Mahomes immediately realized the crisis, and even Kelsey had no time. Humphrey got stuck in his position one step ahead, catching Kelsey off guard. This meant that the route to quickly solve the problem in a short period of time was temporarily blocked. , he needs to wait for Kelsey to run out of space.
So, medium pass or long pass?
Immediately afterwards, Mahomes calmed down and looked around, and immediately noticed that the Baltimore Ravens were not rushing the ball and applying pressure.
The situation is a little weird.
In front of him, Mahomes has two options, either continue to hold the ball, wait for an opening, and wait for an opportunity to make a long pass; or connect with Levi and let Levi break through on the ground.
In the blink of an eye, Mahomes concentrated. He did not rush to make decisions, but forced himself to calm down and make a second defensive read.
Sure enough, Mahomes noticed that Judon was taking a step——
Light, fast, and tiger-like down the mountain.
Judon played a time difference, so that the offensive line could not step up in time to get stuck, so Judon stepped up at full speed from the blind side without any obstruction.
Like a submarine.
If it weren't for Mahomes' calm second defensive read, he might not have known what was going on until he was sacked.
So, what to do?
"Rookie!"
Mahomes must adapt to the situation and immediately call the only target he trusts in the pocket.
Mahomes is reading the defense, and so is Levi.
Levi speculated that the Baltimore Ravens might pounce because the defensive player's awareness of leaning forward was very obvious. As a result, the Baltimore Ravens chose to defend the pass, but instead vacated Levi, who was in the pocket and was preparing to break the ball.
Levi is thinking about how he should create opportunities for Mahomes. Maybe he fills Kelce's position and goes to the short passing area to receive the ball.
At this point, it can be seen that there are differences in the positioning of the quarterback and the running back, as well as the differences in vision and way of thinking.
There was a call from behind. Levi looked back and exchanged a look with Mahomes:
Understanding from heart.
Training together, playing together, and analyzing the playbook, there is indeed a tacit understanding between the two.
Levi immediately retreated and returned to Mahomes. There was no time to communicate. Judon, who was on the blind side, was already charging forward with all his strength.
Levi took advantage of the situation and took the initiative to rush towards Judon, replacing Mahomes to complete the interception.
In the gap of the impact, Mahomes took a step back, bypassed the entanglement of Levi and Judon, and moved horizontally to his left side without any further hesitation.
Forward.
Run wildly.
Mahomes started, without looking left or right, without looking forward or backward. He made a prompt decision and ran with the ball.
Seamlessly switching from a passing offense to a read option offense.
(End of chapter)