Chapter 768: Comprehensive Upgrade
On October 7th, the San Francisco 49ers returned home to face the visiting Buffalo Bills.
Before the start of the game, Lu Ke won the coin toss and chose to receive the ball. So, the Bills kicked off, and the 49ers returned the kick. In less than thirty seconds, cheers erupted at Candlestick Park.
A kickoff return for a touchdown!
Kyle Williams was responsible for the kickoff return today.
In the second half of last season, Williams had gradually lost his starting position. His crucial mistake in the NFC Championship Game became a difficult hurdle to overcome. This season, with Randy Moss joining the team, Williams's position on the team was further squeezed, and now, he mostly plays on special teams.
After the Bills kicked off, the football landed in the red zone in front of the end zone. Williams made a steady catch, and his first reaction was to make a fair catch. For the offense, starting from the twenty-yard line was already good enough. This was the safest and most secure option.
But then, Williams realized that both of his feet were in the red zone and not in the end zone. If he chose to make a fair catch here, the starting position for the offense would be in the red zone, which should be around their own eight-yard line. This was not a good position.
So, he had to return the kick.
Williams adjusted his feet and looked at the positions of the players on the field. The special teams of both teams rushed toward him like a rolling wave. In the red and white intertwined waves, he chose the side to his right, where there were more opposing players and also more of his own players. He looked for a seam to run through in the dense crowd, hoping that his teammates could make a block and a screen for him.
The first opposing player who came close grabbed his waist, but because of his fierce momentum, he failed to maintain his balance. Williams successfully shook off the tackle with just a high knee kick and then used the same method to shake off the second tackle that followed.
In front of him was a surging crowd of people, but in Williams's eyes, it was a fishing net full of holes. He could see so many gaps between the people. With his quick footwork and with the help of his teammates' blocks, he broke through the thick, colorful cloud of players, and a large open area appeared in front of him.
At a critical moment, he avoided a lateral tackle. Although the tackler's shoulder still hit him, his balance was thrown off, and he began to stumble. But he still continued his return run for the third time, stumbling forward. After a few big strides to adjust, his speed returned to normal and he started to accelerate.
Among the 49ers' wide receivers, Williams was the most well-rounded player. Maybe his speed wasn't the fastest, but it was the second fastest after Ted Ginn. On offense, he often came in as a wild card on third-and-long, always getting an unexpected result.
It was the same now.
After Williams's speed was fully ramped up, the situation on the field gradually changed. A moment ago, all the players were waiting to hunt him down, but now he was leading the way, with all the other players chasing after him.
Running faster and faster, Williams fully utilized the open space on the entire field, pushing his speed to the limit. He rushed into the end zone in a whirlwind and scored a touchdown in one go.
An eighty-two-yard kickoff return touchdown to start the game. It was the most perfect way to start, especially for Williams, who was not in good shape recently. It was even more valuable.
After scoring the touchdown, Williams stood in the end zone and roared, letting his emotions out. Not only did the special teams players gather around to celebrate wildly, but the offensive and defensive players also raised their hands high, waiting to high-five Williams when he came off the field.
So, even before the 49ers' offense officially took the field, the home team had already successfully taken the score to "7-0." There was no doubt that they were still the team with the highest scoring efficiency in the league on their opening drives.
This was an interesting phenomenon.
Generally, after halftime, the second half is the focus of the battle between the two sides. The team that wins the coin toss is often more willing to give the offensive initiative to the opponent and earn the opportunity to start the second half on offense. In other words, scoring efficiency at the start is not a highly contested area.
However, there are no absolutes.
This San Francisco 49ers team was different. They were gradually taking control of the game's rhythm with their absolute dominance on their opening drives and turning this powerful morale into a key to winning the game.
After successfully scoring an opening touchdown, the two teams switched sides. Now it was the 49ers' turn to kick off and the Bills' turn to return the kick.
Akers' kick went out of the back of the end zone, and the Buffalo Bills started their drive from their own twenty-yard line. Ryan Fitzpatrick led the offense onto the field.
It was clear from the previous few games that the 49ers' defense had been further upgraded this season.
The defensive line composed of Justin Smith and Ray McDonald was not only excellent at stopping the run but also impressive at rushing the quarterback. The linebacker group composed of NaVorro Bowman, Patrick Willis, Aldon Smith, and Ahmad Brooks was on par with the Pro Bowl level. They had initially shown dominant abilities in both short-pass defense and quarterback pressure.
This game was no exception.
Facing the weak offensive line of the Buffalo Bills, the 49ers' defense went all out.
On the first down, Aldon fiercely broke through the pocket and sacked Fitzpatrick at the twelve-yard line, causing the Bills to lose eight yards.
On the second down, Justin and NaVorro teamed up to pin running back C.J. Spiller at the line of scrimmage, failing to gain any yards for the second consecutive time.
On the third down, Willis and Aldon teamed up for another sack and were very close to getting a safety. Fitzpatrick barely went down in front of the end zone line, just managing to prevent the disaster from getting any worse.
It was a three-and-out, but it was more than just a three-and-out. It was a completely dominant and aggressive defensive approach that left no room for resistance. They cleanly and decisively pinned the opposing offense to the ground, literally making Fitzpatrick suffer "friction" again and again.
As a quarterback, Fitzpatrick was truly helpless. His offensive line couldn't provide effective pocket protection. In front of the defense, he was powerless, like a lamb to the slaughter. Even mobile quarterbacks like Cam Newton and Robert Griffin III would have to run for their lives all over the field.
What was worse was that the Bills' special teams had to punt from their own two-yard line. This was a terrible punting position. Even a small mistake could lead to a series of terrible results, sliding into a deep abyss. The worst-case scenario was another direct punt return for a touchdown by the opponent.
This also made the Bills' special teams extremely careful.
As a result, although the Bills' special teams tackled Williams right after he caught the ball, preventing him from gaining any more yards or causing any more points, the punter's kick was more for height than distance to ensure that the special teams players had enough time to set up. The ball ended up on their own forty-six-yard line, failing to even cross the midfield line.
It was a punt that could not be called a failure or a success and was truly laughable.
So, when Lu Ke took the field again, he had already crossed the midfield and started the drive from the opposing team's forty-six-yard line.
Facing such a great opportunity, Lu Ke, who was highly focused at the start of the game, naturally wouldn't let it go easily. He completed a seven-play scoring drive for a touchdown.
He had a total of seven plays, with three successful passes on four attempts, and three rushing plays.
The most interesting thing was that the three successful passes were all short passes to Vernon Davis. Relying on Vernon's tough running ability in the short passing area, with the assistance of Logan's blocking and screening runs, Vernon was always able to continue pushing forward with his own strength after each catch, gaining more yards.
It could be clearly felt that the 49ers' two-tight-end formation had also become more versatile this season.
By choosing Vernon as his passing target, Lu Ke's tactics were clearly intentional.
The Buffalo Bills' defense had an average overall strength and relied mainly on the teamwork and cooperation between their blue-collar players. However, their strength was still better than their offense. They could always burst out with more energy at crucial moments, which was mainly due to the brilliance of two star players.
One was safety Jairus Byrd, a second-round pick in 2009. In his rookie season, he led the entire league in interceptions and made it to the Pro Bowl. Although his performance had dipped in the past two years, his ability was still unquestionable, and he was showing a strong comeback this season.
The other was defensive tackle Kyle Williams. He had the same first and last name as the 49ers' wide receiver, even with the same spelling, but they had completely different careers.
The defensive tackle Williams was a fifth-round pick in 2006. After three years of honing his skills, he had a breakout season and was selected for the Pro Bowl two years in a row in 2009 and 2010. He had an excellent reputation for stopping the run, forcing fumbles, and breaking through the pocket.
But relatively speaking, the Bills' coverage ability in the short passing area was relatively weak, which became Lu Ke's breakthrough point. He successfully scored another touchdown in a seven-play scoring drive!
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