Everyone says that the competition in the professional league is so intense that there is no comparison in the college league. The two are not at the same level or level at all. But what is the level of competition intensity?
Just look at the rookie seasons of the league's four elite quarterbacks:
Peyton Manning, who played the main role in his first season after the draft, only achieved a dismal record of three wins and 13 losses; Drew Brees and Tom Brady both spent their rookie seasons on the bench. After spending the above, the latter is only the fourth quarterback of the team, and is not even qualified to lead the training group; Aaron Rodgers only got the job after waiting hard on the bench for three years. Starting opportunity.
The entire league has reached a consensus that the intensity of competition in the college league is too weak. Rookie players need time to adapt to the rhythm and style of the professional league, especially the quarterback position, which has extremely strict tactical requirements. Few players are willing to push a rookie quarterback directly into the starting position if not as a last resort.
This is the most accurate description, and it is what every team is trying to avoid.
The San Francisco 49ers didn't have many options. Jim Harper chose to go all-in, and the team manager and team management decided to support the head coach after discussions.
For Colin Kaepernick, this is a much-anticipated and blockbuster opportunity; but the reality is cruel and cold. The professional league is like a giant beast with its bloody mouth, crushing it with great vigor and mighty force. However, there was barely any breathing room for him.
In the first three games of the preseason, Colin's performance was like sleepwalking.
The first game, "3:24", was brutally beaten by the New Orleans Saints; the second game, "3:17", was helpless against the Oakland Raiders; the third game, "7:30", was defeated by the Houston Texans He is so cruel that he has no temper at all.
In the three games, Colin's performance was abysmal, with a passing success rate of less than 40%. Short, medium and long passes were all misfired, and the weakness of unsatisfactory passing accuracy was magnified to the extreme; at the same time, It resulted in seven interceptions and two fumbles, and he actively lost the ball nine times.
What's even more frightening is that the success rate and propulsion intensity of his invincible running ball in college have suffered a serious blow. He was sacked, tackled, and hit many times, and his running yardage in three games was only 83 yards. That’s all.
His strengths in college were attacked; his weaknesses in college were attacked.
At the same time, the complicated tactical manual was also indigestible for a while. Colin fell into full passivity. It was a disaster. In three games, there was not a single passing touchdown; the only touchdown for the entire team came from Against the Houston Texans, running back Anthony Dixon contributed.
Fengdrick's test score is 37. Colin is not a stupid quarterback. On the contrary, he is a very alert and intelligent player. In terms of horizontal comparison, among the four elite quarterbacks, Fengdrick's test is the highest. Aaron's score is only thirty-five points. So, it's not Colin's problem.
So, what is the source of the problem?
time. and lack of experience, improper adaptation, and wrong rhythm caused by lack of time. In other words, the problem that every rookie quarterback faces is also the most serious, fundamental and important problem: they need more time and space to grow.
However, the San Francisco 49ers are now in a difficult position. Because the team's second quarterback is still a rookie, and an undrafted rookie at that. In comparison, Colin is already a better choice, and he is also a prospect that the team took a fancy to early in the draft.
They can investigate why they didn't choose a veteran quarterback as a backup after Alex Smith was injured, at least not to be in such an embarrassing situation; they can also investigate why Colin Kaepernick's growth rate is so fast. Far lower than expected. In the draft, should they choose several other quarterbacks, such as Jack Lock or Brian Gabbert.
But these inquiries were of no avail. Instead of seeking blame and regret, focus on the present and find solutions. It is still the preseason, and the problems discovered at this time can be corrected and solved. It is the most unwise to mess up now.
Therefore, in the fourth game of the preseason, Jim Harper once again gave his vote of confidence to Colin Kaepernick.
Generally speaking, there is a full week between one game and the next. The team has two days off, four days of training, and the official game on the seventh day; but in order to prepare for the last preseason game, the San Francisco 49ers After six days of full-time training, with Colin as the core, the tactical manual was dismantled and shredded, and demonstrated and trained over and over again.
However, after the game started, the nightmare still did not wake up.
Colin's first pass of the game was an interception. The offensive players didn't even start to move their bodies, and then they came off the field with a blank look on their faces.
Standing on the sidelines, Jim roared angrily, "Read, read! You have to read the defense! What the hell are you doing!"
This interception was entirely a low-level mistake by Colin. He passed the football to the arms of the San Diego Chargers defensive player. Even the commentator couldn't help but laugh, "Did the 49ers quarterback see it wrong?" The color of the jersey?”
Without saying a word, Colin walked to the side sullenly, took the helmet, and sulked with himself. Braylen tried to step forward to comfort him, but Colin pushed him away.
Kip and Craig exchanged glances, and both of them shook their heads. Finally, Craig stepped forward and tried to persuade, "Jim, why don't you try with someone else? At least, we can make some changes." The atmosphere in the team, it’s really terrible right now.”
Jim scratched his head in frustration and looked at Craig fiercely, "We have no way out."
He hadn't considered Craig's opinion, but the regular season was already around the corner, and his skin could even feel the heat that was about to come. If he changed his mind at this time, it might further damage Colin's self-confidence and ruin the journey of a thousand miles. In the ant nest, he could not open this hole.
Therefore, the next attack must be Colin. This is the professional arena, either you go upstream or you go downhill. There is no other choice.
The game is still going on. Fortunately, the San Diego Chargers' status tonight has always been unstable, and they are evenly matched with the San Francisco 49ers.
Both sides' offense and defense were full of mistakes and yellow flags. The game was not only boring and depressing, but also interrupted at regular intervals. Maybe it's because the San Diego Lightning's defense didn't press hard enough, giving Colin breathing room; maybe it's because of the accumulated experience in four weeks of games that Colin finally found his own rhythm.
Anyway, Colin scored a touchdown.
Passing a touchdown, he successfully connected with Braylon Edwards and scored the first passing touchdown in the San Francisco 49ers' four preseason games.
After opening up the situation, Colin finally found some feeling on the playing field, and Jim's trust was finally rewarded. After the first passing touchdown, Colin's first running touchdown also came in the third quarter. During the red zone offense, Colin could not find the passing target, so Colin chose to run the ball himself. , completed a five-yard dash and scored his first touchdown in a professional game.
At the end of the three quarters, the score between the San Francisco 49ers and the San Diego Chargers came to "17:17", temporarily tied. There is still one game left to fight before the San Francisco 49ers get their first win of the preseason.
But at the beginning of the fourth quarter, it was the opponent who scored first. The San Diego Lightning's offense lasted for more than six minutes. They failed to score a touchdown, but they pushed the ball into the free kick range. After kicking the free kick, they took the lead at "20:17".
After falling behind, the San Francisco 49ers, Colin played again, but struck out, handing the initiative to his opponent; but after a series of mistakes, the San Diego Lightning also struck out. During this back and forth, the game came to a two-minute official timeout. The ball was in the hands of the 49ers. They still had the initiative. A free kick could tie the score, and a touchdown could reverse the game.
After the timeout ended, Colin led the offensive team to continue playing, stumbling, but still pushing past halftime. The San Diego Chargers then stepped up their defense, forcing Colin to rush a pass once and force a pass fumble once, and then the team was stuck eight yards on third down.
In the third attack, Colin chose to run out of the pocket and tried to advance with the ball. However, he was severely sacked by two opponents players and knocked to the ground.
Colin did not stand up.
The entire San Francisco 49ers were in panic. The team doctor immediately came forward. After on-site inspection, Colin's body was fine, but his vision was a little blurry. In order to ensure safety, the team doctor needed further examination, so with the help of the team doctor, Colin left the field. Substitute quarterback Lu Ke appeared again and acted as a firefighter.
However, this time Lu Ke failed to become the savior.
After taking the field, the 49ers had no choice but to force a fourth gear with no retreat. However, Lu Ke completely ruined the 49ers' hopes with an interception, and the ball returned to the hands of the San Diego Lightning.
The game ended at "17:20". The San Francisco 49ers lost their fourth preseason game and ended the preseason journey with a complete defeat. The performance was like a nightmare from which they could not wake up, and they still watched. Not to the end.
The disaster is still not over.
During the routine examination after the game, Colin failed the league's concussion test. Due to the concussion, he was forced to miss at least four games. When and whether he can play will be determined after follow-up observation.
Subsequently, the San Francisco 49ers' misfortune reached its peak: after careful consideration and emergency deliberations, officials officially announced at the first opportunity that Chinese-American quarterback Lu Ke would become the team's starting quarterback in the first regular season game.
Boom, boom boom! After the news came out, the entire alliance fell into shock and turmoil, and it went straight to the boil!
When Jim Harper told Lu Ke about the team's decision, Lu Ke's first reaction was: Am I too tough? Every starting quarterback is injured? What kind of trick is this? Could it be Ryan Fitzpatrick?
This is a good thing... right?
