Though the Super Bowl was still several days away, Minneapolis was already buzzing. In fact, the party had kicked off ten days earlier—before even the Pro Bowl—and it was only heating up further.
Both the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs had already arrived early in Minneapolis. Following the league's schedule, they began acclimating to the field and, more importantly, to the blinding floodlights that would soon descend, getting their first taste of the Super Bowl frenzy.
As North Arica's premier annual sporting event, the Super Bowl commands unmatched attention and viewership. Not even the Oscars, the Olympics, or the World Cup can compare—
Just in North Arica alone, it easily draws over 100 million viewers.
That's one-third of the entire U.S. population.
And now, thanks to the NFL's strategic outreach over recent years, Arican football's popularity has surged across South Arica, Oceania, and Europe. With broadcasts in 56 countries and regions worldwide, this year's Super Bowl was guaranteed to ignite a global dia storm.
It ant everything would be magnified—
Every mont scrutinized as if under a microscope.
The atmosphere would be unlike any other ga.
Which is why acclimating to the field beforehand was crucial.
"No, no, no—absolutely not. That's absurd."
"Only soone who knows nothing about football would say sothing that ridiculous. Don't go around claiming you're a player if you can't even grasp the basics."
"Why not? Patrick makes it look easy when he throws it."
"Pfft. What's a quarterback doing here? Go catch your breath sowhere. Didn't you hear? Quarterbacks and beasts aren't allowed in this contest."
Mahos: ???
He was standing right there. Was no one going to acknowledge that?
Yet the rest deliberately ignored him, chattering animatedly while treating him like a bystander. Mahos stood there wide-eyed, scratching his head in frustration.
"C'mon. Don't let these amateurs fool you," said Kelce. "They make a quarterback's job sound mystical—like so divine skill. It's really not that big of a deal."
"Ha! Spoken like a true tight end. Only soone bold enough to challenge Zach Ertz could say sothing that confident. But Travis, we're not talking about catching—we're talking about throwing a 50-yard pass."
"Exactly! This isn't soccer where you just blast the ball. In football, passing requires finesse—a perfect arc, tight spiral. Not everyone can throw a laser."
"Kelce, you're great at catching, no doubt. But passing? Not a chance."
That jab lit the spark. The others erupted in playful jeers and exaggerated expressions, ganging up on Kelce with rowdy enthusiasm.
But Kelce didn't mind. He stood tall with hands on his hips like a superhero, chest out, proud and boastful.
"Real n get it done."
Laughter exploded all around.
After the jokes settled, Kelce continued:
"Seriously, it's not that hard."
"One, there's no pressure from the pass rush."
"Two, there's no defensive interference."
"It's just you and your aim. Not only is 50 yards doable—60 is nothing. What makes it hard in gas is everything else. Otherwise, Hail Marys wouldn't be so rare."
"If you asked soone to throw a Hail Mary right now, maybe Rodgers would step up. But just tossing the ball here? Easy."
That afternoon was Kansas City's scheduled field acclimation session.
Basic drills had been completed. U.S. Bank Stadium was an unfamiliar environnt—it's one of the few indoor stadiums in the league. Football is, after all, traditionally an outdoor sport. So stadiums have retractable roofs, but few are fully enclosed.
With the Super Bowl set to be played indoors, players were focused.
Consider the freezing winds of Gillette Stadium in Foxborough—indoors removed weather variables like temperature, wind, and humidity.
It was a boost to passing offenses.
Would that favor the Eagles?
Perhaps. But the Chiefs had their own potent passing ga, even if their ground attack was top-tier this season.
Still, Smith's struggles with long throws couldn't be ignored.
In contrast, Foles was a gunslinger—not afraid to take deep shots.
That sparked a team-wide debate.
Does an indoor stadium make deep passes easier?
Soon everyone—offense and defense—joined in.
You could see the tension in their eyes and feel it in their body language:
They were excited, nervous, fidgety. A bit too much of both.
Understandable.
For most players, this was their very first Super Bowl.
On the Chiefs' roster, the only one who'd played in a Super Bowl was Revis. And even then, back with the Patriots, he wasn't a starter.
Now, this young, hungry team had clawed its way to the biggest stage in football—
No wonder everyone was on edge.
And that's why Kelce stepped up.
As team captain, he tried to defuse the tension with humor and bravado.
But deep down, even he felt unsure. He couldn't carry the locker room alone.
That's when Eric Berry's absence beca painfully clear.
All season, even though Berry had been injured, the team had drawn strength from him. They played as if he were still on the field—hoping to reunite with him at the Super Bowl.
But now? Everyone knew that dream was over.
And the void it left was crushing.
They needed to adjust not just to the field—but to that new emotional reality.
Just like the Eagles had adapted to life without their starting quarterback, the Chiefs now had to face the big ga without their defensive captain.
Houston noticed it. But he couldn't do anything about it.
Standing in the stadium he'd always dread of, sothing still felt missing.
Then he saw Lance—sitting cross-legged nearby, eating fruit like he didn't have a care in the world.
"Rookie, what do you think?"
Lance, blissfully munching away, suddenly found himself in the spotlight—
And the heat of everyone's stares made his skin tingle.
He definitely wasn't ready for that.
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Powerstones?
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