From a distance, Lu Ke could see Carson Palmer standing quietly near the midline, waiting quietly, without smiling or being annoyed, to be precise, without any special expression, just standing quietly in place, as if immersed in his own thoughts, and had not been able to get rid of it for the time being.

Lu Ke made a special trip to greet Peterson, but after a little delay, Palmer waited in place, but did not show an impatient look.

"I'm sorry." Lu Ke trotted over, took the initiative to greet him, gave Palmer a hug, and apologized first, and then returned to the topic, "Wonderful game!" Looking forward to the next encounter. ”

Palmer didn't react in particular, and gently nodded his head, "Wonderful game." After a pause, he didn't seem to have anything to say, Lu Ke was about to turn around and leave, but Palmer did not let go of the palm holding Lu Ke's right hand, but pulled Lu Ke away, seeing Lu Ke showing a puzzled expression, he let go of his right hand a little embarrassed, revealing an awkward smile, which amused Lu Ke directly.

"I didn't mean to." Palmer shook his right hand, avoided Lu Ke's gaze, and casually said an explanation that was not an explanation, but then he realized his restraint - in front of Lu Ke, a young man, why should he be restrained? His restraint looks really stupid.

So, Palmer raised his head again, coughed lightly twice, cleared his throat, and sure enough, he saw that Lu Ke still politely did not turn around and leave directly, he subconsciously raised his hand and rubbed his nose, "I just want to say that you won the game with your strength today, and I need to congratulate you." ”

Lu Ke was slightly stunned, then pursed the corners of his mouth, and said generously, "I thought what you wanted to say was that you hated me to the core." You know, in terms of our past history, and the situation we have now, I don't like it, but honestly, I can accept it. ”

In the past history, Lu Ke and Palmer competed head-to-head for the 49ers quarterback position in San Francisco 49ers, and Lu Ke finally won; In the current situation, the San Francisco 49 and the Arizona Cardinals are sworn enemies in the same district, and the home insult incident last year and the "Cardinal Massacre" last year are all evidence.

Obviously, Lu Ke and Palmer are not suitable for any brotherly story.

Palmer reacted for half a second, and then he realized, wanting to laugh and explain - in fact, the competition in the San Francisco 49ers tryout camp was nothing at all, it was fair play, and it was Jim Hubble who made the final choice, which is really normal in the professional league, and he didn't take it to heart at all.

But the explanation was really too long, and he didn't know where to start, so he couldn't hold back in the end, shaking his head again and again while laughing, "As an Arizona quarterback, I don't like you; And as a person, I know what this game really means. So...... Wonderful game! ”

Palmer did not forget that they were mortal enemies in the same district, and when the whistle blew again in the next game, they were still fighting against each other endlessly, and the only goal was to defeat the opponent and even humiliate the opponent with all their might; But Palmer had to admit that in today's game, Lu Ke won his respect and admiration with his performance.

The more-for-tat enemies are, the more mortal enemies they are, the more they should know how to appreciate their opponents, because this is not only respect for the enemy, but also respect for themselves.

Losing this game, Palmer was more unwilling and more aggrieved than anyone, not because of the Arizona Cardinals, but because of himself-

He entered the league in 2003 as a rookie and took over the starting quarterback position of the Cincinnati Tigers, but in his eight seasons at the helm of the team, he only made the playoffs twice in 2005 and 2009, which has become a fatal weakness that has been repeatedly criticized.

Although he has proven his passing ability over the years in the league, he is definitely an above-average quarterback, but the Cincinnati uniform team still refuses to recognize his ability, especially after three consecutive seasons of high-end performance, there has been a two-season decline in form, which has saddled him with countless infamy, and the team even humiliated him with a cheap contract, treating him as a wagging tail and begging for mercy, and then he chose to break with the team, and all fans considered him a traitor, Betrayed the whole team for a small salary - only he knows, he just does it for a breath, he tries to prove what he can do, he tries to prove that he still deserves recognition.

For this reason, Palmer even chose to retire miserably, proving his determination in such a decisive way.

But the gods of fate played a joke, and in the three seasons following Palmer's turnaround, the Cincinnati Tigers, led by 2011 rookie Andy Dalton, made it to the playoffs in three consecutive seasons, making Palmer's previous eight years of hard work seem like a joke.

That's what people do, they only see the superficial results: three seasons in the playoffs; But you can't see the accumulation behind the surface: in the previous eight seasons, Palmer's run-in with the attacking team has laid a lot of foundations for the team's growth, and success has never been achieved overnight.

But, so what? Palmer was thus forgotten by Cincinnati, and in that city he was a traitor, and nothing more.

This year, the Arizona Cardinals are almost able to make it back to the playoffs, just a little bit, Palmer can almost feel the hot heat of the playoff tickets, and he can almost prove to Cincinnati and the entire league that he still has the ability to make the playoffs, but in the end, he still fell short, and he missed by a thousand miles.

As you can imagine, Palmer felt more frustration than anyone else; When facing Lu Ke, Palmer's mood was also more complicated than that of the other members of the Arizona Cardinals.

But Palmer struggled to express his admiration, knowing that it was the better player who led the team to victory.

"However, the next time we meet, I will never let victory slip through the way." Palmer then added.

Lu Ke showed a shallow smile, "I strongly doubt it. "Because, the victory will still be his. That strong self-confidence was undisguised, blooming wantonly in a sweaty smile, but after all, it was not as bright as those bright eyes, which was convincing.

Palmer smiled dumbly, "Swap helmets?" ”

Lu Ke looked at Palmer seriously, but still shook his head and gave a negative, "Forget it." Then he added, "It's not about the right thing, not about the person." ”

He has no problem with Palmer, but he has a lot of opinion about the Arizona Cardinals.

Such an honest answer really made Palmer laugh, "I thought you weren't that narrow-minded. Actually, he had to agree that swapping helmets was obviously not a good idea - Arizona Cardinals fans would not feel comfortable, and there could be more unnecessary disputes in the future.

"Well, now it turns out that your idea is not correct." Lu Ke still joked unhurriedly, then nodded slightly, did not stay any longer, and turned around and left.

Palmer stayed in place for a moment, watching Lu Ke join his teammates in the carnival celebration, he knew that today's part of his own part has come to an end, and this year's stage has also been closed, and now is the time to leave, waiting for the next year.

Looking up, the fans inside the University of Phoenix stadium were venting their anger in their own way, a large number of fans were exiting the stadium, a small number of fans were cursing the Arizona Cardinals' defensive players, and some fans were ...... Constant venting of anger at the rest area of the 49ers in San Francisco.

Everyone seems to have an infinite amount of anger, but they don't know how to vent it, so they just explode at everyone else. This scene only made the Arizona Cardinals' defeat look more humiliating and stupid, and they became fools who couldn't afford to lose.

Palmer retracted his gaze, but inadvertently saw Peterson standing not far away - Peterson was also staring at the fan scene in front of him with deep eyes, but after all, he didn't say anything, drooped his head in decadence, withdrew his gaze, and then saw Palmer standing next to him.

He couldn't describe whether last year's "Cardinal Massacre" was more painful, or tonight's fall in front of the finish line was more tragic.

Peterson didn't say anything more and walked over in silence; Palmer didn't say hello either, and just followed in Peterson's footsteps and walked in the direction of the locker room.

The University of Phoenix Stadium became the venue for the San Francisco 49ers to celebrate, but they also knew they couldn't be too presumptuous on their rivals' turf or they would riot, and after just a short cheer, the players and coaches returned to the visiting dressing room to celebrate.

In addition to the San Francisco 49ers players and fans, reporters are eagerly awaiting:

After stepping on the corpse of a sworn enemy in the same district to make it to the playoffs and ending the 2013 regular season with a six-game winning streak, the morale of the defending champions has reached a new peak, and now the most real and urgent question is on everyone's doorstep -

How competitive can this injury-plagued team be in the playoffs? No one will forget the invincible team last season, no one will forget how many ups and downs the defending champions have gone through to get here this season, and no one should forget the miraculous moment when they stood on the edge of the cliff and finally came back to life in this game, so ...... What are the chances of the San Francisco 49ers defending their title?