The 2012 season was already six weeks in. The competition was becoming more and more intense. Previously, there were three undefeated teams for five weeks. After this week, the Houston Texans were the first to fall, losing at ho to the Green Bay Packers, failing to continue their perfect record.
So, there were only two undefeated teams left this season: the San Francisco 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons.
But overall, the Atlanta Falcons' schedule was relatively easy. Out of the six opponents they had beaten so far, only the Denver Broncos had made it to the playoffs last season. In the sa category, the San Francisco 49ers' number was three, including the defending champions New York Giants, last season's NFC top seed Green Bay Packers, and the strongly resurging Detroit Lions.
Naturally, when Chuck once again gave the number one spot in the power rankings to the San Francisco 49ers, it didn't cause any controversy, but disagreents were inevitable. So people supported the 49ers, and naturally, so supported the Falcons, and their opinions and views were different.
Without a doubt, these two teams were the hottest teams in the league right now, and both teams were from the NFC, which once again fueled the argunt that "the NFC is more competitive than the AFC." Unfortunately, the two teams won't play each other in the regular season, otherwise, we could have looked forward to the ultimate "king vs. king" showdown.
From "San Francisco 49ers vs. Atlanta Falcons" to "Lu Ke vs. Matt Ryan," the discussions in the league were buzzing and endless. Even the friendly interactions between Lu Ke and Ryan during the Pro Bowl skills competition beca a focal point for reporters. Both quarterbacks were asked for their thoughts on each other.
"I like Matt. He's a quarterback who can take any joke. During the Pro Bowl, Tony and I really, really enjoyed talking to Matt. Of course, I an, his passing skills are also excellent, and he's undoubtedly one of the top players in the league. But personally, I like his sense of humor more."
This was from Lu Ke's comnts. On the other side, Ryan also gave a corresponding response.
"I don't know, I've never understood his jokes. He and Tony are like they're from Mars; their way of thinking is really hard to understand. So, if we et again, I hope he won't tell any more jokes. Oh, you're asking about his ability? Without a doubt, Bambi is an excellent quarterback. I have to say, the league still isn't giving him the treatnt he deserves."
When a reporter asked Ryan about the "jokes" again, he still had a blank expression. "No, I'm serious about that. I don't like them."
"Hey, you should say that to my face. It hurts when you send ssages through a reporter." On the other side, when Lu Ke was interviewed about the sa question, he continued with his teasing and joking tone.
It was clear to anyone that because Lu Ke and Ryan had a good relationship, they could easily poke fun at each other like this.
And the sa was true for Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys. "No, I don't know them. I don't know them at all. They didn't ntion in their conversations, did they? We're not friends. Wait, did Bambi ntion ? Ha, yes, we do have a bit of a relationship. He's the Charlie Chaplin of football. Trust , I'm serious."
Last year, the NFC had a three-way rivalry between Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, and Lu Ke, which continued all the way to the playoffs. This year, the first half of the NFC season was a two-way battle between Lu Ke and Ryan, who were competing with each other and not backing down. We'll have to see if this continues in the second half of the season.
As of now, Lu Ke has quietly beco the favorite to win the regular season MVP.
In the post-ga stats against the New York Giants this week, Lu Ke once again delivered a career-best performance.
Eli Manning: 24-for-38, 367 yards, three touchdowns, one interception, a passer rating of 110.3, and a PFF grade of 1.4.
Lu Ke: 27-for-39, 507 yards, five touchdowns, one receiving touchdown, no interceptions, a passer rating of 156.7, and a PFF grade of 2.0.
In this ga, Lu Ke had a breakout performance. Both his passer rating and PFF grade reached new career highs. The latter was the first ti in his career that he got a perfect score, and the forr was only one step away from a perfect score of 158.3. In addition, this was Lu Ke's first five-hundred-yard ga of his career, his second five-touchdown ga, and most importantly, another ga without an interception.
In addition to this top-tier performance, there was also a twenty-three-yard run that couldn't be ignored. Because the final drive was so spectacular and caused a huge wave of discussion, many people completely forgot about Lu Ke's unexpected running play at the beginning of the second half.
This was a true peak performance!
If we were to vote for the mid-season MVP right now, Lu Ke would probably win by a landslide. This wasn't a wild guess; it was a well-reasoned deduction.
In Week 6 of the regular season, the league's official Players of the Week were announced.
The AFC Offensive Player of the Week was Peyton Manning of the Denver Broncos. The Defensive Player of the Week was Jairus Byrd of the Buffalo Bills, and the Special Teams Player of the Week was Jacoby Jones of the Baltimore Ravens.
The NFC Offensive Player of the Week was Lu Ke of the San Francisco 49ers. The Defensive Player of the Week was Antrel Rolle of the New York Giants, and the Special Teams Player of the Week was Kyle Williams of the San Francisco 49ers.
This was the second ti Lu Ke was nad Player of the Week since the start of the 2012 season. He was also the only player in the league so far to be nad Player of the Week twice, including all players on offense, defense, and special teams. In addition, Lu Ke was also nad the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for September.
By the way, the winner of the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for September was JJ Watt.
It was clear that since the start of the new season, Lu Ke had been on fire, following a steadily rising curve. From fans and comntators to social dia and the league's officials, everything was experiencing a full-blown explosion, truly ushering in a golden age.
Just when everyone was worried about the "sophomore slump," Lu Ke went against the grain and delivered a perfect answer sheet, leading the entire league with his outstanding performance. This was true for both his team's record and his personal performance. This also allowed Lu Ke to easily surpass the hot topics of Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III, and he rightfully beca the most talked-about player of the season so far.
However, for Lu Ke, nothing much had changed, at least not a drastic change.
He didn't have ti to care about the buzzing discussions on social dia platforms, as the regular season was still ongoing. It wasn't a bye week or the end of the season, and he had to devote himself entirely to preparing for the next ga. What's more, the next two gas were divisional matchups, and they couldn't be treated as simple gas. He needed more ti to prepare for them.
When a person stays away from the dia and information, they unconsciously create a vacuum, as if they are isolated from the world and beco completely at peace.
This was Lu Ke's current state.
Even though it was Monday, the first day off after the ga, Lu Ke still followed his usual routine: he did so recovery training in the morning, watched ga footage in the afternoon, and went back to his parents' house for dinner in the evening.
After the regular season started, Lu Ke's life beca incredibly routine. Almost every day was packed with activities, and he had very little ti to relax. Naturally, the ti he spent with friends and family drastically decreased. This was especially true now that Lu Ke lived alone, and Lu Zhengze and Jiang Younning also had to go to work. The number of tis they saw each other was even fewer.
So, the only ti his parents could see him each week was on ga days, and that was from the stands to the field. Not to ntion away gas. Although this was the price a professional player had to pay, Lu Ke didn't want it to be like this.
So, after the start of this season, Lu Ke adjusted his schedule. He would try his best to make ti for dinner with his parents on the night of his first day off after a ga. Even if it was just to listen to their boring nagging, it was good. If he had to cancel a dinner for so reason, he would definitely make sure to go the following week.
Last week, in order to prepare for the New York Giants ga, Lu Ke watched ga footage so much that he forgot to eat and sleep. He skipped Monday dinner, so he couldn't do it this week. Even if the ga next week was difficult and important, ti with his family was irreplaceable.
Because it was Monday, Lu Zhengze and Jiang Younning both had to work. Dinner was usually scheduled for after 8 or 8:30 PM. Every ti, Jiang Younning insisted on cooking her son so delicious homade dishes herself.
Later, the company where Jiang Younning worked found out about this tradition, and her boss even gave her a special pass, allowing Jiang Younning to leave work thirty minutes early every Monday to go to the traditional market and supermarket to buy ingredients. This was a small perk that was exclusive to Lu Ke and showed his imnse popularity in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Of course, Lu Ke wouldn't go ho exactly on ti. It was just a little past 5 PM when he drove ho at a leisurely pace. His neighbors greeted him warmly once again, and then Lu Ke sat down in the familiar living room.
On the coffee table were all kinds of hotown snacks, all handmade by Jiang Younning: beef jerky, peanuts, dried bamboo shoots, walnuts, nougat... Jiang Younning consulted professionals, including Lu Ke's private nutritionist and the team's official nutritionist, to get recipes and confirm that all the ingredients were up to standard before making them herself.
Lu Ke comfortably sat on the sofa, holding a container of walnuts, slowly relaxing.
Until there was a knock on the door. "Knock, knock."
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