"The fourth wild card game of the 2013 season, the Green Bay Packers vs. the San Francisco 49ers, is about to begin."

"Countless fans have been waiting for this game for too long. In the year-end standings of the regular season, the San Francisco 49ers ranked seventh in the offensive group, while the Green Bay Packers offensive group ranked ninth, and both offensive groups have slipped significantly from the past two seasons, even behind the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys and other teams that did not make the playoffs. ”

"But absolutely no one can underestimate these two attacking groups, and the match between Lu Ke and Aaron Rodgers is arguably one of the most anticipated meetings in the league."

In addition, the San Francisco 49ers defensive group ranked fifth in the entire league and still maintained a relatively high-intensity performance, but the downward momentum was still relatively obvious; After last season's highlights, the Green Bay Packers defensive group is back on track this season, finishing just 25th in the league. ”

"Judging from the ranking data alone, the state of these two teams has dropped to varying degrees, and the San Francisco 49ers should be the all-round dominant side in this game, but the actual situation is slightly different, the impact of injuries and the subjective and objective factors of the lineup are making their season play ups and downs, which cannot truly reflect the strength of the team. At the end of the season, both teams, which had gradually recovered their squads, showed their ability to 'defeat the strong with the weak', proving that they are still strong contenders for the title, and the rankings are just a reference. ”

'The team that played better on the pitch will undoubtedly have the upper hand in this game, but until the final whistle blows, the outcome is always in suspense and no one can say for sure whether there will be a reversal, which makes the game even more exciting.

"In the coin guessing session, the Green Bay Packers won the ball, and Rodgers led the offensive team to officially debut!"

On the first kick-off return of the game, the Green Bay Packers chose to return - but the quality of the return attack was really average, stumbling to the 20-yard line, and then being completely intercepted by the San Francisco 49ers special service team, and finally the Green Bay Packers still started the attack from their own 20-yard line as if they were safely catching the ball.

The temperature at the Blue Castle Stadium was really too low, even though all the Green Bay fans were cheering and shouting with all their might, but the players on both sides on the field continued to breathe, and it seemed that even the breath could feel the cold and dry air, and the goosebumps on the surface of the skin couldn't help but start jumping out; The two forwards who had both completed the formation began to steam above their heads, swirling in the bright light.

Standing on the pitch, Rodgers put on a traditional run-and-ball formation:

The "I" formation is used to complement the two-by-two formation, but it is slightly deformed, and the inside receivers on the left and right wings compress their standing space inward, and fight side by side with the offensive tackles at both ends of the offensive line, so that the five-man forward line becomes a seven-man forward line, and Rodgers follows closely behind the center forward, completely condensing the entire ground running formation.

At the same time, the outside players on the left and right wings both moved a few steps to the outside, widening the distance, showing a balanced and symmetrical position of "flying together on both wings"; The positioning of these two players and the running back standing vertically behind Rodgers form an equilateral triangle, and when viewed from top to bottom, you can feel the beauty of the balance of the entire attacking formation.

First of all, it's a standard run-and-ball formation; Secondly, it's a top-pocket-protected version of the run-ball formation. All sides are revealing the tactical intent of Green Bay to choose a ground attack.

It's no surprise that, as in the second London Bowl of the year, which took place in a wet environment after a rainstorm, it was a no-brainer for both teams to increase their ground attacking ratio.

What's more, Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy is a relatively restrained style of tactical thinking — just relatively.

McCarthy is very focused on pass-and-run balance, often hoping to be able to open up the situation with ground attack first and shorten the yardage required for the first attack; Then use the pass to create a large yardage advance, disrupting the position and rhythm of the defensive group between the tactical changes of one advance and one retreat, one tightening and one loosening, and one pulling and pulling.

This is a very effective offensive tempo control, and you can see the traces and imprints of his background in the West Coast offensive system. But why is McCarthy relatively reserved? The main reason is that it is due to the limitations of the ground offense, and it can be said that it depends on the individual ability of the running back.

Once the ground offensive efficiency in the first or second gear is lower than expected, McCarthy's passing tactics immediately reveal their shortcomings, still not versatile and bold enough - or cunning enough, more often relying on Rodgers' individual ability to open up the situation, but if the wide receiver makes a mistake, or the pocket protection of the offensive forward collapses, or Rodgers' personal form fluctuates, then McCarthy will not find a solution.

This season, despite Rodgers' missed a number of games, the Green Bay Packers were still able to finish ninth in the offensive group, and the biggest reason was the addition of Eddie Recy, the best offensive rookie of the year, a young running back who was arguably one of the biggest discoveries of the 2013 season.

Thanks to Lacey's excellent performance, McCarthy's tactical layout has become varied. In the opening matchup, which was the first professional game of rookie Lacey, he was already very good, but he still couldn't burst out of real energy; Now that the Wild Card Game is facing off again, Lacey has fully grown and become another important pillar of the offensive team, which has also become an important turning point in the game.

Now, the game has just begun, because of the weather, Rodgers' passing touch must still need a little time to warm up, McCarthy chose to use Recy for ground attack, which is really a normal and not enough choice, and it can even be said to be a choice that is in line with McCarthy's usual style.

So, how exactly did the San Francisco 49ers defense respond?

Three defensive forwards and two outside guards are listed at the front, facing the offensive forward across the Chu River and Han boundary, showing a strong rushing posture; The two interior defenders were at least five yards behind, staggered slightly, and kept their eyes on Rodgers' side one after the other, one left and one right, and they were able to mark Rayce immediately no matter which direction he rushed out.

The two cornerbacks are facing the two receivers on the outside, but with their positions stretched out in unison, at least six to seven yards away from the line facing the front; Finally, the two guards stood ten yards away, but they were very particular about their positioning, aiming at the two receivers standing on the inside of the Green Bay Packers, in contrast to the forward line's rushing stance, and posing for the defensive posture, completing the layout of the entire defensive position.

"You have a good plan, I have a wall ladder", the San Francisco 49ers defense team also highlighted their advantages in ground defense and front-line rushing; The relatively weak second-line defense started the game with a counterpoint marking, and in cold weather, the passing defense was able to regain a slight advantage.

"Attack!"

In the cheers of the audience, Rodgers announced the kick-off, and then you can see the difference between the tactical deployment of the two sides -

The Green Bay Packers unexpectedly but reasonably chose to pass the ball, whether it was a receiver standing on the inside pretending to attack the front line, or a receiver standing on the outside to open the distance, all four players rushed forward and prepared to receive the ball.

The San Francisco 49ers unswervingly chose to raid the pass, and the five-man rush pass posture did not receive the slightest interference from the position of the opposing offensive front, and the tiger rushed forward like a mountain, but took advantage of the gap left by the receivers on both sides of the offensive group after rushing forward, and instantly broke through the pocket protection of the offensive front.

An even more bizarre alignment came in the next second: Raisi jumped past Rodgers and jumped out of the center of the front line, ready to finish in the short pass area, and it was not the two interior guards who were responsible for the opposing defense - they noticed that Raisi was not going to hold the ball, and immediately both stepped back to assist in the short pass defense, and then Glenn-Dorsey, the peak of the San Francisco 49ers, abandoned the opposite center and turned his head to choke Rassi's position.

This is a very bold mismatch defense, because Pinnacle's body is bulky and inflexible, and more often than not, he is like a stake to resist the onslaught of the opposing center and the attacking guard; But now, Pinnacle Dosse stopped in the path of Lacey's forward rush with a wrong step.

Raisi is a bulldozer-style running back, and it's almost impossible for a regular lineback or defensive end to finish a quick defense; But Dosse is an exception, because he is a wall, and then a wall is across Raisi's bulldozing road, and the two people collide head-on, and Dosse is able to play to his strengths and avoid weaknesses.

Wait, did Dosse aim at Lacey from the start? And the two interior guards are smoke bombs? If that's the case, then the defensive team has really studied the Green Bay Packers' offensive routines very, very thoroughly.

Even without Dorse, the San Francisco 49ers defense relied on two outside guards and two defensive ends to tear apart the vulnerable offensive line on the opposite side, and instantly sprinted towards Rodgers unreasonably - whether the opponent was preparing a ground attack or a pass attack, the visitors were ready to carry out the raid and rush tactics to the end, and they were not confused by the Green Bay Packers smoke bombs, which also gave the defensive group a slight advantage.

Rodgers immediately felt a strong crisis, he quickly ran out of his pocket from the right side of the ball, and his nimble and light steps instantly shook off the entanglement of the two strikers, but then Rodgers's eyes noticed Aldon Smith's unrelenting agile figure, and he actually pursued it with perseverance.

Dangerous!