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Layer by layer, inside and out, it was all people.
Having been in the league for two seasons, Hill was completely dumbfounded by this scene.
From an unknown rookie drafted in the fifth round, Hill had grown into the top wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs, outshining Smith this season. He thought his era had finally arrived, but he hadn't anticipated that Li Wei would completely steal his lilight.
One mont, Hill felt a twinge of jealousy; the next, seeing the scene before him, he was glad it wasn't him.
"Those reporters look like they want to devour the rookie alive."
Just then, Kelsey finished his interview and ca over, "Should we bet that all of them put together still couldn't handle the rookie alone?"
Hill looked at Kelsey with doubt in his eyes: Are you sure?
Kelsey just chuckled hehe and said nothing.
"Li Wei, Coach Reed chose you at the last mont to execute the trick play, did you see it coming?"
"Li Wei, as the hero of today's victory, how do you feel?"
"During that last touchdown, when you were tackled by Orakpo, what were you thinking? How did you manage to stand up? Was it so mysterious Chinese kung fu?"
The rapid-fire questions poured down on Li Wei like a torrential rainstorm, tightly packing the press room until it was almost suffocating.
Rarely seen on his face, Li Wei spoke with no smile but a serious look.
"Thank you for your questions, but I'd like to talk about Houston's last defensive play that caused the fumble, and Revis's assistance in ground defense interception."
"I want to talk about Smith's precision in continuous quick, short passes and the relentless blocking by Hill and Kelsey that helped open up the field before I lost my balance."
"Hey, guys, this isn't so Hollywood superhero movie. We are used to seeing superheroes fight alone to save the planet on giant movie screens, but on the football field, the first thing my ntor Coach Burns taught was:
A running back without teammates is like a bird without wings."
"We face difficulties as a team, and we embrace success as a team."
The room fell silent.
It wasn't so much Li Wei's words that were shocking, but rather the typically smiling and cheerful Li Wei suddenly becoming serious and sharp in his speech that filled the press room with an air of solemnity.
Now, the reporters finally experienced what it felt like for the defensive group on the field when facing Li Wei!
To Hill, watching this unfold was utterly astonishing and surprising.
Hill turned to look at Kelsey, who wore a smile and shrugged lightly: I told you so.
Watching the group of reporters, Kelsey expressed sympathy, wiping away a taphorical tear for them, "These fools got duped by the rookie again. They haven't learned their lesson all season. If they think he's easy to bully because of that harmless face, it shows they haven't fallen on their faces enough."
In the press room, Li Wei maintained an upright deanor, not giving the reporters a chance to counterattack.
"I've been here for twenty minutes. I can leave now."
Wait, is he imitating Lynch?
Hey, hold on a mont!
As Li Wei turned to leave, reporters hurriedly called out to him, the overlapping voices forming a rare sight.
"Li Wei, Li Wei, what are your expectations for the next ga?"
"This season, the Kansas City Chiefs have had their ups and downs. Everything turned around from the ga where you killed the clock to defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers and then you lost to the Oakland Raiders in the following ga. So, with this ga, you managed to again make a last-second coback to beat the Tennessee Titans. Does this an the Kansas City Chiefs will definitely enter a downhill phase next?"
"So for the next ga, would you prefer to face the Pittsburgh Steelers or the New England Patriots?"
Blah, blah, blah, like a machine gun firing rapidly, the reporter hurried to throw out all his questions before Li Wei could truly turn and leave.
After finishing speaking, the reporter gasped for breath.
Swipe, swipe, swipe—
All eyes were focused on Li Wei, and the air suddenly tensed up.
Clearly, this was a critical question—not just for Li Wei but also for Reed and Smith, who likely couldn't escape it either; this was the next focal point of attention.
Who would be the Kansas City Chiefs' next opponent, the Pittsburgh Steelers or the New England Patriots?
This question was like having to choose between the left or right hand, difficult either way, as both options were tough nuts to crack.
Similarly, no matter who it was, the Kansas City Chiefs had beaten them in the regular season.
But what about in the playoffs?
Li Wei stopped in his tracks and returned to his usual deanor.
"Obviously, no matter who the opponent is, we are the underdogs," he said.
"As you all say: we are inconsistent, we are not mature enough, and against any opponent, we must give our all," he added.
His words were correct, and that's how journalists and professionals saw it too, but why did it sound strange coming so openly from Li Wei?
No one would forget the regular season results were not like that.
Looking at Li Wei's humble smile, a journalist felt a chill: sothing was off.
Then.
"We will be prepared, no matter who the opponent is. We look forward to a head-on confrontation."
Smile.
Li Wei flashed a set of neat, white teeth, reminiscent of Professor Hannibal Lecter from "The Silence of the Lambs."
The conversation took a turn.
"However, the decision is not in our hands, is it? The dice have been cast, and now we wait for the outco of the other wild card ga," he said.
The next round of divisional gas depended on the result of the second Arican League wild card ga.
If the Jacksonville Jaguars, the third seed, won, they would face the second seed, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Kansas City Chiefs would head north to challenge the New England Patriots.
If the Buffalo Bills, the sixth seed, won, they would face the New England Patriots in a divisional showdown, and the Kansas City Chiefs would play the Pittsburgh Steelers away.
As Li Wei said, the Kansas City Chiefs had no choice in the matter.
But this official response was definitely not what the journalist initially intended, and without caring about the goosebumps all over his arms, he imdiately followed up with another question.
"My question is, on a personal level, who do you look forward to facing again? You've encountered both teams during the regular season. Who do you hope to go up against again, Brady or Roethlisberger?"
"Hayward and Watt," he replied.
This ti, Li Wei did not evade but directly nad two players—
Not Brady, not the Roethlisberger and Bell-Brown trio, but mbers of the Steelers' Steel Curtain, Defensive End Hayward and lineman Watt.
From Li Wei's perspective, the reason was simple.
As a running back, Hayward and Watt were his corresponding defensive players.
The regular season matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers had truly made Li Wei feel the intensity of a Professional League-level defense, the perfect clash of individual skills and tactical setup, and with that ga's cliffhanger win for the Kansas City Chiefs, Li Wei indeed looked forward to another encounter with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Since it was the playoffs, it was only natural to challenge the strongest in the league.
However, the journalists and other players didn't see it that way.
Was Li Wei… ignoring Brady?
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