Dominate the Super Bowl

Joshua Brand, a Baltimore Ravens scout, had been in the league for a full twenty years, having seen many storms and endured countless challenges. His keen and critical eyes were well known within the industry.

This year, from spring training camp to the kickoff of the new NCAA season, he had been keeping an eye on quarterbacks, noting a few young players worth marking:

Louisville’s Lamar-Jackson, Wyoming’s Josh-Allen, Oklahoma’s Baker-Mayfield, among others.

Result!

A sudden phone call, and he had to travel thousands of miles to Alabama to observe a running back.

A running back?

Brand rolled his eyes, not out of disrespect for running backs—he, as a scout, cared little about position, as long as the player had potential; rather, this particular running back had played so few games that his data didn’t hold much value, hardly necessitating any fuss.

They were all professionals, they all knew that shining in one or two games meant nothing; some players exploded in their contract year only to blend back into the crowd after securing a lucrative deal. This was not uncommon. How could anyone get overly excited about one game? It was utterly unprofessional.

Who knew? Perhaps the next game would reveal his true colors? Maybe after three or five games, he would disappear without a trace?

In Brand’s view—

Interest was the original sin.

From what he heard, the media craved novelty, while the league aimed at the big cake of the Hua Xia market. It seemed that the teams were the same.

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"Chinese descent."

Everything hinged on that keyword.

Since 2005, the NFL had been positioning itself in the Hua Xia Market. After ten whole years, results were finally showing. Now, all they needed was a superstar to boost the entire market, just as the NBA had done years ago, to land the final kick, culminating in a complete transformation.

So, as long as this running back wasn’t a total flop, a third or fourth-round pick should be achievable. After all, the public’s interest was already there.

If so, what was the need for a scout? Wouldn’t it be enough simply to look at the post-game statistical data, since it was all just a show?

However, upon reading the information more thoroughly, Brand developed a hint of interest—

The warm-up game had defeated Clemson Tigers led by DeShaun-Watson, and the opener had triumphed over USC Trojans led by Sam-Darnold.

Interesting, since both quarterbacks were also on Brand’s watch list.

But that was just slightly.

After all, Li Wei was a running back, with no direct competition with quarterbacks; it wasn’t fair to compare them as such. They should be evaluating the strength of the Defensive group.

Indeed, both Clemsons Tigers and USC Trojans were strong offensive teams. As for their defenses, it was better left unsaid: Clemson was somewhat better, but USC was practically made of paper, no wonder Alabama had rushed over three hundred yards against them, taking whatever they wanted as if it was their own backyard.

So, do those game data hold any reference value?

Yes, but very limited.

Brand knew that this was the actual reason why Baltimore Ravens head coach John-Harbaugh had sent him to Tuscaloosa.

In the 2012 season, Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers to become Super Bowl Champions, with quarterback Joe-Flacco clinching the Super Bowl MVP, unmatched in his glory at the time.

But those who truly familiar with the Baltimore Ravens, those familiar with John Harbaugh, would know that they didn’t rely on offense to top the championship; defense was their foundation—

John Harbaugh, a disciple of Nick Saban, is currently the most outstanding disciple in Coach Saban’s coaching tree, having carved out a niche for himself in the NFL.

After topping the Super Bowl, Baltimore Ravens legendary lineman "Thor" Ray Lewis retired, which led to the disappearance of the most intimidating threat in the defensive group and forced Harbaugh to rely on Joe Flacco as the core to establish a team that would conquer through offense.

The problem is that after the nerve-racking peak of the 2012 season, Flacco’s inconsistency in passing accuracy gradually became apparent, often making wrong choices when facing rush pressure, and his number of interceptions remained high.

Compared to his peers, quarterbacks Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, and Philip Rivers, Flacco’s decline was indeed rapid; he was already struggling to keep up with the league’s pace last season.

Everyone knows that excellent quarterbacks are hard to find, and top-tier quarterbacks are even rarer, hence even average quarterbacks are still in demand.

Flacco had gradually fallen out of the excellent category, yet still above average. The Baltimore Ravens had no plans to replace him in the short term, especially since the offensive group built around Flacco was maturing, and Harbaugh believed they should not abandon it midway but continue to improve the offense.

Thus, utilizing running backs to assist the quarterback became the simplest and most efficient method.

Last season, the Baltimore Ravens prioritized filling other gaps in the draft, giving up the competition for Derrick Henry, and only chose a running back in the fourth round; this year, they could make room for that.

Moreover, that was the Crimson Tide Storm, Coach Saban’s team, Harbaugh thought it deserved special attention.

Then.

Joshua Brand packed his bags and came here first thing.

Standing at the entrance of Bryant Denny Stadium, Brand looked around and could spot at least seven or eight other scouts.

Seven or eight scouts may not sound like many, but Brand knew that this setup was significant; after all, it was just one game, yet it attracted so much attention, largely due to its Chinese heritage—

Just like a panda had arrived.

Brand took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and took a deep drag.

For the next while, it was probably going to be bustling, yet it was uncertain how much real talent would be seen.

But on second thought, the Crimson Tide Storm defensive group was worth paying attention to. Right here, there were several defensive group players that needed careful observation, so he might as well switch modes and see how the quarterbacks perform against the formidable Crimson Tide Storm defense.

Maybe, things might not be as dull as imagined.

As it turned out, Brand’s prediction was correct.

The Crimson Tide Storm indeed demonstrated their powerful dominance, singing all the way to a six-game winning streak after a victorious season opener, firmly holding their position as the NCAA’s top seed.

The defensive group was still the star, with an average of only 14.33 points lost per game, undoubtedly the most dominant team in the NCAA at the moment, truly intimidating.

Indeed!

Saban was still Saban, the Crimson Tide Storm was still the Crimson Tide Storm, relying solely on the defensive group to become a strong candidate for champion, and clinching a six-win streak without any suspense.

However, the real surprise was the offensive group, scoring an average of 45.8 points per game across six games, leaving other traditional offensive powerhouses behind and leading by a wide margin as the NCAA’s highest-scoring team this season, truly astounding—

Is this still the defensive powerhouse Crimson Tide Storm they knew?