Chapter 566 Spring Breeze Turns into Rain
There was an uproar.
Media reporters and Chiefs players were all shocked by Hunter's indiscriminate attack, with their mouths open and dumbfounded.
Obviously, this was an accident——
After all, this is just spring training camp, and attendance is all voluntary. Every year, there are players who sit out of spring training camp to compete for big contracts, posing as a gesture to ask the team to take a seat at the table with them without making a fuss.
The real key is the subsequent summer training camp, which is a mandatory training camp that must be attended. Once absent, it will be a war posture. Players and teams must be fully alert and treated with the highest standards.
At present, the situation between Bell and the Pittsburgh Steelers is not good, and the atmosphere is tense. This is a fact; but Bell is only absent from the spring training camp, and the media, including the media, have not raised the alarm to increase the danger level.
Building momentum also needs to be done step by step.
However.
As soon as he came up, Hunter detonated the bomb without hesitation and put on a life-or-death attitude. The atmosphere was pushed to the extreme and the situation became tense instantly.
Heavy!
Absolutely heavy!
It seemed that the ripples of shock could be clearly felt spreading slowly.
As he was turning around to return to the office, Vicky was stopped by a member of the coaching staff, explaining the commotion at the entrance to the training base. His forehead exploded, his eardrums roared, and his entire back was instantly covered in cold sweat.
On that side, the Pittsburgh Steelers were thrust into the spotlight to deal with a tricky situation. With the Minnesota Vikings and Cousins' fully guaranteed contracts, other teams were a little sensitive. Now all eyes are on Bell's running back contract. The Pittsburgh Steelers are also under tremendous pressure, and team managers are thankful that they are not the ones facing the problems.
But he didn't expect that a lone assassin would appear in the defending champion team?
It is conceivable that the Kansas Chiefs will also be involved in the storm; moreover, they also have another top running back standing on the cusp of the storm. Thinking of this, Vicki's scalp feels numb.
Grass. Hurry! Hurry!
Originally, Vicky was thinking that he should talk to Levi during the spring training camp, comfort and encourage Levi, and let Levi know that the team is on the same side as him; but that is not needed for the time being. If you were anxious, you could wait and see what the Pittsburgh Steelers would do after Bell was absent from the training camp, but they didn't expect that a bomb would detonate on the first day.
Before the foul language could escape his throat, Vicky turned around and ran towards the training base.
From a distance, Vicky could see at a glance Levi, who was surrounded by reporters on three levels inside and outside. The veins on his temples began to beat crazily. Without a moment to breathe, he could vaguely hear Levi's voice.
"...Of course, I support Bell."
Veach's eyes darkened. First, Hunter, and then Levi. The main running backs of the Kansas Chiefs both supported Bell's absence from the spring training camp?
What's next?
The two running backs may ask the team to improve their treatment in one turn!
Vicki was running, and his knees gave out, and he almost had a flat wrestling.
The crowd paid no attention to Vicky, its attention entirely focused on Levi.
"There is no doubt that Bell is an excellent player. He has proven his ability and value with his practical performance time and time again."
"Football is a collective sport, and every position has its meaning and role. The quarterback is the same as the kicker, the running back is the same as the safety, and none of them can be missing."
Vicky: Wait, this... doesn't seem right. The positive kind.
What's really brilliant about Levi is that he doesn't say running backs are as important as quarterbacks, but emphasizes that every position is essential. At the same time, comparing running backs to safeties is a clever move.
In a situation where the league is paying more and more attention to passing offenses, teams are more inclined to pay high salaries at quarterbacks, wide receivers, two front lines, cornerbacks, etc. Because of the pressure of the hard salary cap, other positions salary has been compressed, and the first ones to bear the brunt are running backs, linebackers and safeties.
Of course, there are always exceptions, but that's the overall trend.
This is a situation worth exploring in depth.
In a league that advocates passing the ball, it is really puzzling that the safety guard, who is the deepest position on the field, gradually loses the game value and player salary to the defensive tackle.
In the past, the role of safe guards was very diversified, and they could perform different tasks near or far from the line of scrimmage; but in the past two years, especially after the craze of blasting the Legion has subsided, the functions of safe guards have gradually become monotonous.
The safeties only need to stand in a deep position twenty yards away from the line of scrimmage and guard the areas on both sides of the center, and the quarterback will automatically find ways to avoid risky passes in deep positions.
Naturally, the difference in tactical functions between top-level safeties and ordinary safeties is getting smaller and smaller. What is more often tested is the safety's ability to start from a deep position, defend against theft, short- and medium-term passes, defend running backs on the ground, and tackle wide receivers. There are fewer and fewer safeties like Earl Thomas of the Seattle Seahawks who are capable of man-to-man coverage and deep coverage in the backfield.
The decline in safety guard ability will naturally lead to a decline in value.
In addition, at the turn of the century, safeties have always been synonymous with strong collisions. The impact ability that makes wide receivers fearful gives safeties a unique status; but in recent years, league rules have increasingly protected offensive players, not just quarterbacks. There are also wide receivers who tie up the hands and feet of the safety, and the impact safety is almost disappearing.
In fact, some cornerbacks changed from cornerbacks to safety guards after they passed their peak period and their physical abilities declined overall. This is also a side proof. Currently in high school and college, young men with truly outstanding physical talents are choosing cornerbacks over safeties.
Now, the annual salary of safeties is about the same as that of running backs——
Even the average annual salary is slightly lower than that of running backs.
In other words, both safeties and running backs are the result of the league's emphasis on passing offenses.
In other words, the running back's plight is not an isolated phenomenon.
His eyes returned to Levi.
A short sentence contains a huge amount of information.
Maybe a layman doesn't have a special feeling, but it's completely different in the ears of professionals.
Vicki was stunned for a moment and did not move forward in a hurry.
Facing the bustling crowd of reporters, Levi still talked and laughed calmly.
"Of course, Bell's excellence does not require my recognition and praise, because it is obvious to all, and no one understands this better than the Pittsburgh Steelers."
"Coach Tomlin has expressed his appreciation and recognition in public more than once. They have an excellent team and an excellent lineup."
"So, I believe that the Pittsburgh Steelers can give Bell a fair and equitable treatment, and I also believe that the Pittsburgh Steelers can give an outstanding top player the treatment he deserves."
With a smile on your face, it feels like spring breeze.
One second I had just experienced Hunter's violent storm, and the next second it was all gone and calmed down by Levi's spring breeze.
Is this normal?
(End of this chapter)