American Football: Domination

"13:30."

The game ended with a Kansas City Chiefs victory.

For the second consecutive week, the Chiefs hosted a do-or-die game at home, this time against another division rival in a brutal clash. With a revitalized spirit and competitive edge, the Chiefs gave their opponent no room to breathe, securing a decisive win.

After back-to-back wins, the Chiefs improved their record to 8–6 and managed to pull ahead of their divisional rivals, firmly securing their place atop the division standings. With playoff contention now under their control, the Chiefs had gone from teetering on the edge of elimination to leading their division and reentering the conversation as serious Super Bowl contenders.

The league was abuzz—

The Chiefs, who had just endured a six-game losing streak, had transformed and seemingly leveled up. What should have been nail-biting battles turned into dominant blowouts.

What kind of script was this?

At the heart of the storm, the Chiefs' running backs put on a show.

Kareem Hunt: 89 rushing yards, 75 receiving yards, and 1 touchdown.

Lance: 127 rushing yards and 1 touchdown.

Combined with contributions from the third and fourth running backs, the Chiefs gashed the Chargers' ground defense for a total of 233 rushing yards, setting the highest single-game rushing total in the league this season.

In addition, after breaking Jamaal Charles' franchise record for consecutive 100-yard rushing games (12) in the previous game, Lance extended the streak to 14 games, continuing to etch his name into the history books.

So...

This was the Lance embroiled in locker room controversies, allegedly ostracized by teammates?

This was the Lance accused of prioritizing personal endorsements over team success?

This was the Lance dismissed as too fragile and lacking endurance to handle the physical toll of the NFL?

Are you sure?

Anthony Lynn: You journalists… you conniving villains conspiring with Roger Goodell to sacrifice me on the altar just to pave the way for Lance's glory. You… you…

Coughs up blood.

Internal injuries.

Collapses.

Meanwhile, as Lynn lay pale and drained from the loss, the journalists weren't exactly celebrating either. They were victims in all this, too! As much as their reputation for being shameless was well-earned, this public humiliation stung. This time, their collective failure was too conspicuous to ignore.

Journalists: "Mr. Bart, brother, we finally understand your pain. You've suffered so much!"

Bart: "Shoo, shoo! Don't lump me in with you. I've finally escaped that nightmare. I have nothing to do with you clowns—don't even try to claim me."

For once, Bart had hesitated and wavered, but he chose to trust the Chiefs this week.

Back in Week 3, Bart had realized that the more the media trashed Lance and piled on the pressure, the stronger he became. Lance was a monster, thriving under stress and always delivering surprises.

So, even as the media launched an all-out attack on Lance, Bart learned his lesson and sided with the Chiefs this time.

And for once, Bart was right. The Chiefs won.

Now, Bart was walking on air, gleefully distancing himself from the rest of the press corps.

The other journalists, on the other hand, had no such luck. By the time the post-game press conference rolled around, they all wore constipated expressions, the weight of humiliation hanging over them like a storm cloud.

"Lance, so… how's everything in the Chiefs' locker room?"

For once, the journalists tried to tread lightly, their questions awkward and vague.

Lance's expression was nothing but sincere. "What's wrong with the locker room?"

Journalists: Oh, come on! You're really playing innocent with that little Red Riding Hood act again?

"There were reports of tension and conflicts in the locker room, with long-simmering issues finally boiling over and leading to some ugly situations."

At this point, the journalists decided they might as well go for broke. Embarrassment aside, they still had a duty to pursue the truth—after all, journalism's core value is defending the truth, isn't it?

"Oh," Lance said, tilting his chin slightly.

… That's it?

The journalists were getting desperate. "Th-that's all?"

Lance: "Yep, that's it. I don't see any need to respond to baseless and ridiculous rumors. Surely none of you believe them, right?"

Journalists: "But…"

Wait—no, they couldn't expose their sources.

Journalists: "But during practice, the team atmosphere seemed off. You were training apart from the others. What was the reason for that?"

Lance: "Are you trying to spy on our team's practice sessions for other teams?"

Journalists: Slander!

They were so angry they nearly forgot that the practices in question were open to the media. Clearly, the Chiefs hadn't been trying to hide anything. So where was the "spying" accusation coming from?

Wait… open practices? So the Chiefs knew the media would be watching?

It felt like the pieces were finally falling into place.

Lance, however, remained composed. With a calm smile, he met their scrutinizing gazes.

"I don't know what gossip you've been hearing, but truth is the foundation of journalism. In this era of social media, where fake and misleading information is rampant, it's more important than ever to follow the 'two-source rule.' Surely I don't need to remind professional journalists of this, do I?"

The "two-source rule" requires that any news story be verified by at least two reliable sources. While most stories ideally have three to five sources for verification, the rule sets two as the minimum threshold—especially for exclusive scoops.

If journalists failed to meet this standard and ended up publishing fake news, they would have to face the consequences themselves.

Like now.

Lance's subtle counterattack left the press conference room in complete silence.

Step by step, Lance dismantled their accusations, leaving the reporters with no ground to stand on. Even though they knew they'd been outmaneuvered and led into a trap, it was their own greed and lack of diligence that had put them there.

What could they say?

Someone in the room suddenly remembered an important detail: Lance had graduated with honors in journalism from the University of Alabama. So this was… a case of the river flooding the dragon king's temple?

The journalists exchanged glances, unsure how to proceed.

"Lance, are the Chiefs confident about making the playoffs this season?"

Switching tactics, they decided to go with flattery. If criticism didn't work, surely praise would.

But this, too, was a trap. They had already prepared follow-up stories claiming the Chiefs were getting cocky, celebrating playoff success before even securing their spot. Such hubris would surely lead to a collapse in their final games.

Praise, as a weapon, could kill silently.

But Lance's crisp, decisive response snuffed out the spark before it could ignite.

"The only thing I'm focused on right now is the Miami Dolphins."

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Powerstones?

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