Dominate the Super Bowl

The NFL Draft is more complex and thrilling than any other sport, due to the multitude of positions and the hard salary cap that leaves no room for adjustment.

Now, with a full four months until the draft, and the competition for NFL playoff spots sprinting to the finish, the focus should rightfully be on the Super Bowl, yet in reality, the strategies surrounding the draft are already in full swing, featuring not only overt maneuvers but also conspiracies and traps.

Rivera is a cunning fox, knowing how to leverage Shula's experience working with the Jacksonville Jaguars to gather intelligence for their draft.

Shula was no exception, "Coach, at the Jaguars, General Manager Caldwell places a greater emphasis on market appeal. Even if they are interested in Li Wei, it's not because of his skills. So, all we need to do is slightly steer the rumor mill and make Caldwell take notice of Watson's charismatic influence."

Rivera's eyebrows twitched slightly, "DeShaun Watson?"

After a pause, Rivera shook his head, "Instead of promoting Watson, it's better to hype up Lamar Jackson, who has a higher market value than Watson does."

Shula came up with another idea, "If that's the case, should we maybe push for Watson to win the Heisman Trophy buzz, to prevent Caldwell from setting his sights on Li Wei because of the Heisman?"

Rivera shook his head again, saying something profound, "We need to guard not only against the outside but also not forget the inside."

Enough said.

But Shula instantly understood—

Carolina Panthers General Manager David Gettleman, he has no interest in running backs.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Just this past April at the draft, Rivera had a heated debate with Gettleman; it wasn't just the first round where they didn't pick a running back, they even missed Derrick Henry in the second round.

As a result, the Carolina Panthers paid a heavy price that season.

Now, with the next draft just around the corner, will Gettleman be willing to take Rivera's advice and choose a running back this time?

If they want to get Gettleman's attention on Li Wei, then the Heisman Trophy is an important bonus.

So, if the Carolina Panthers want to compete with the Jacksonville Jaguars at the draft, they need to increase the weight of their bargaining chips—

Such as, improving their draft position.

After all, every spot in the first round of the NFL can be worth millions of US dollars.

Shula looked at Rivera, whose calm demeanor betrayed a decisive ruthlessness, and let out a silent sigh, somewhat guessing Rivera's decision:

That's good.

As the season comes to an end and both spirit and body have reached their limits, since there's no hope for the playoffs, in tomorrow's game, everyone can relax a little, minimize the risk of injuries to the greatest extent, and prepare for the next season. It's unnecessary to take risks just for the sake of damaging a divisional rival.

In the long run, this is a clever strategy.

Meanwhile, a bustling spotlight focuses on Li Wei.

Perhaps, from a global perspective, running backs indeed face more and more challenges in the NFL and NCAA, but the views of head coaches and general managers differ; no coach would outright deny the importance of running backs, not even those who favor a West Coast offense, which is pass-oriented.

With the University of Alabama climbing to the top of the Peach Bowl and entering the nationwide championship game, Li Wei delivered the first two-thousand-yard season of his career, and his season statistics closely approached last year's Heisman Trophy winner, Derrick Henry, putting Li Wei into the spotlight and making him the topic of everyone's conversation.

The reason is very straightforward—

The raw power and ferocity of Derrick Henry are visible to the eye. While his brilliance and success are to be lauded, they are hardly surprising.

But Li Wei was different; from his physique to his experience and resume, this rookie running back surprisingly penned such achievements—producing the same statistics yet delivering a completely different impact.

Step by step, footprint by footprint, Li Wei was becoming the biggest surprise of this year's NCAA football season.

Elsewhere, the unwilling-to-be-ignored Watson finally made his voice heard.

For DeShaun Watson, this season had been tough.

Last season, the young and inexperienced Watson was thoroughly outplayed by running backs Derrick Henry and Christian McCaffrey, ultimately finishing third in the Heisman Trophy voting.

This season, a fully evolved and upgraded Watson once again became a supporting character, first to Lamar Jackson in the first half of the season and to Li Wei in the latter half.

What kind of feeling was that?

It was like being the golden supporting actor in a soap opera—throwing tantrums, getting stabbed, feigning death, not missing out on any tough or melodramatic scene, winning endless applause and cheers but never being able to stand under the spotlight. In the end, all that remained was a state of dishevelment, nothing else gained.

Moreover,

tragically and pitifully, the Clemson Tigers were strong throughout the season, defeating formidable opponents and closely following the undefeated golden run of the Alabama Crimson Tide Storm, leaving the Louisville Cardinals led by Jackson right behind, becoming the nationwide top-tier team.

But!

They stumbled right before the finish line, similarly to the Louisville Cardinals—facing the unranked University of Pittsburgh, Watson experienced a harrowing three minutes and eventually lost "43-42" at home, failing to carry their undefeated golden run to the end.

Luckily within the misfortune, the Clemson Tigers' outstanding performance throughout the season meant that this loss did not wreak further damage. They managed to stop the bleeding and finished second in the NCAA rankings, advancing smoothly to the nationwide championship stage.

Even so, Watson broke out in a cold sweat.

From Jackson to Watson, the two favorites for the Heisman Trophy stumbled one after the other, suffering great embarrassment, which also led both to take their anger out on Li Wei.

Jackson was already out of contention, with no chance to prove himself; but Watson still had a chance. He was eager to prove himself, with a desire and passion stronger and more intense than ever before.

He needed to make his voice heard, he needed to prove his existence—

He was not a supporting character.

If the 2016 NCAA season had only one superstar, it would be him, DeShaun Watson.

He would defeat Li Wei, he would climb to the top on Li Wei's shoulders, he would rightfully take the championship from Li Wei's hands, and he would make all the media realize their folly and ignorance.

On December thirty-first, at nine in the morning, the Peach Bowl kicked off first.

The University of Alabama crushed the University of Washington effortlessly, and after witnessing Li Wei's still dominant and steady performance, the spirits of Clemson University were elevated to their peak, uniting the team without any need for the head coach to rally them.

At three in the afternoon, the Fiesta Bowl began at the University of Phoenix Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals, where the second-ranked Clemson University faced the third-ranked Ohio State University.

It was the clash of titans, like fire meeting flint.

Both teams had a season record of twelve wins and one loss and were both showing top-tier competitive form, which meant the outcome could be very close, depending on their performance. Both had opportunities for the win.

However, no one could have imagined—

Watson said, I beg to differ.