Dominate the Super Bowl

"Defense!"

"Defense!"

The unified shouts of support hovered over Arrowhead Stadium, with a rolling heatwave burning in the air, noticeably tightening the atmosphere.

The Philadelphia Eagles' Offensive group had finally executed the tactic Pederson wanted, finally!

In this wave of offense, Wentz was in top form, launching nine plays in a total of four minutes and thirty-seven seconds, leading the offensive group to advance sixty-five yards, unstoppably charging into the Kansas City Chiefs' Red Zone. The end zone was now within reach and the confrontation between the two teams had reached a fever pitch.

Last season, the Kansas City Chiefs Defense frequently excelled, and it was precisely their strong performance in the Red Zone that contributed greatly to the team's victories.

In the season opener against the New England Patriots, the Defense's Red Zone performance was average until they found their form in the fourth quarter and shut out Brady; and now it was the same, with Wentz truly in form, the Kansas City Chiefs Defense seemed slightly disheveled, only finding intensity in the Red Zone.

Twice stopping the Philadelphia Eagles' attempts to reach the end zone, coming to a third and five situation—

One side, determined to succeed.

One side, refusing to back down.

The intense clash between offense and defense tightens to its peak in this moment.

Kansas City Chiefs Safety Eric Berry was roaming near the end zone baseline.

Usually, a safety needs to cover the entire backfield, requiring alertness and agility, especially in an era dominated by passing, where safeties often represent the ceiling of the Defensive group; but now in the Red Zone, the activity space is compressed and the role of the safety seems to suddenly become less important.

However, as a veteran, Berry had his own understanding.

Indeed, in the Red Zone, cornerbacks and linemen have clear responsibilities, they need to mark their opponents accurately; and at that moment, the safety's judgment of the overall situation often becomes the key to showing the Defensive group's intensity.

Berry's gaze, tightly locked onto Wentz.

Reed has always been criticized for disliking ground attacks, as he is a typical passing coach, and his offensive tactics are heavily skewed towards passing; Pederson is Reed's protege, the entire tactical system is inherited directly from Reed, with an emphasis on passing even more profound than Reed's.

Just now, in this series of nine plays, Wentz chose to pass every single time, every one.

The running back didn't touch the football at all.

Last season's NFL rushing leader, LeGarrette Blount, joined the Philadelphia Eagles this season from the New England Patriots, originally expected to be a pillar of the offensive group, standing beside second-year quarterback Wentz as a support, but now he was left out.

Blount: What's going on here!

Thus, it also became a gamble—

For the next play, would Pederson dare to continue calling for a pass? Or would he unexpectedly choose a run?

No way, would Pederson really be so deliriously stubborn as to keep calling for passing plays?

Even Reed needed to rely on running plays to adjust the rhythm; Pederson couldn't be so single-minded as to push towards the end zone with passing plays only, especially since Wentz isn't Manning!

Especially after entering the Red Zone, when passing targets are closely guarded and passing routes easily dive into danger, ground attacks often carry more impact; but just now, in the first and second plays, Pederson actually continued calling passing plays, to the point that even Pash was dumbfounded.

So, what about third down?

At this moment, Berry was observing, guessing.

Passing? Running?

"Offense!"

… Running? Was Wentz finally prepared to hand the football to Blount, letting this 247-pound (112 kg) tank showcase his power?

Berry's pupils constricted, his attention highly focused, firmly locking onto the movements of Wentz and Blount.

Then.

No.

A fake run and a real pass.

Pederson actually chose to stubbornly persist to the end with a passing play!

This, too, was a choice.

While other members of the defensive group engaged immediately, Berry didn't rush; he captured Wentz's movements and, judging by the gaze and motions of this sophomore quarterback, observed calmly and steadily.

Then, he sprang into action—

Wide Receiver Jeffery.

The very player responsible for the Philadelphia Eagles' first touchdown in the second half.

Wentz tried to connect with Jeffery again, but this time Berry was one step ahead.

Berry dashed towards the Kansas City Chiefs' end zone on the right diagonal upper blind spot, swiftly glanced at the positions of Jeffery entangled with his teammates, appeared preemptively on the trajectory of the pass, and jumped ahead, stretching his right hand to the limit.

Extending, reaching.

He touched it.

Berry stretched out his hand trying to wrap around the football, aiming for an interception, but Wentz's pass was more unstable than expected, not evenly spinning, preventing Berry from controlling it with one hand.

Whoosh.

The football glided off Berry's palm, altering its parabolic flight path and shooting out.

Out of bounds.

"Oh, so close."

"Just a bit closer, and Berry would have had the interception."

"God, that was incredibly thrilling. Pederson stubbornly chose to pass, finally hitting a wall in the red zone, narrowly missing an interception, struck out, and with the end zone within reach, yet ultimately unable to score."

"Certainly, Pederson dodged a bullet, not getting intercepted, and the Philadelphia Eagles can still try for a field goal to reduce the gap, getting back to within a touchdown's difference."

"The game isn't over, though the Kansas City Chiefs performed brilliantly in the second half, the Philadelphia Eagles still cling to a lifeline at the edge of the cliff."

Berry, extremely annoyed and regretful, crouched down hugging his helmet—

The interception slipped through his fingertips.

After all, a ten-point gap and a seven-point gap are completely different, giving the Philadelphia Eagles hope, the battle continuing to drag on.

A hairbreadth's difference, yet it provided the Philadelphia Eagles with a glimmer of hope.

In the 2017 season, the Kansas City Chiefs' schedule turned out to be tougher than imagined, after tying up with the New England Patriots till the fourth quarter in the first game and narrowly determining the winner, the second game was tightly contested by the Philadelphia Eagles again, leaving suspense about the outcome until the fourth quarter.

Maybe, some would say, it's just a missed interception, no need to fuss so much, but then Bart would stand up and correct that viewpoint—

In competitive sports, the fate of the game is often decided by such minute details; missing opportunities comes with a cost, especially in critical matches.

Otherwise, how did the Kansas City Chiefs' playoff curse come about?

Bart clasped his hands in earnest prayer, hoping sincerely that if a Football god truly existed, this turn of events could once again reverse the fortunes, becoming a new starting point for the Philadelphia Eagles to dominate the Kansas City Chiefs.

"13:20".

Three minutes and twenty seconds into the fourth quarter, instead of widening the gap, the two teams narrowed it, the Philadelphia Eagles not giving up hope.

Moreover, the consequences of Berry's missed interception soon became apparent.

The Kansas City Chiefs suddenly switched modes, completely disregarding the balance of pass and run from the previous three quarters, launching an explosive and intense series of passing plays which ultimately saw Smith and Kelsey complete a fifteen-yard pass for a touchdown.

Following that, the Philadelphia Eagles showed strong performance, with Wentz activating "God Mode," initiating the most spectacular offensive play of his two seasons in the professional league—

"Touchdown!"

"Carson Wentz! Oh God!"

"What did I just see?"