Dominate the Super Bowl-Chapter 1667 - 1666: Chaos Unleashed

A stone stirs a thousand waves—

With the Kansas City Chiefs’ loss, the league’s dynamics have finally changed.

Of course, a game is just a game; it’s too early to say the direction and climate of the entire season have completely changed, and no one can afford to be complacent. There may be more than one turning point in the long season, and it’s still far from certain that the Super Bowl’s ownership will change.

However, a win is a win, and thirteen months later, the league leader is finally not the Kansas City Chiefs.

Moreover, no one will forget that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost early to the New Orleans Saints, and now it’s the Kansas City Chiefs’ turn. The two core players in this offseason’s arms race faced early tests and setbacks, making things interesting.

This also proves once again that there’s no permanent champion in sports arenas, especially in the NFL, where fierce competition and suspense in victories and losses are eternal themes.

Now, the leader has changed.

In the American League, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans are undefeated at the top.

The league is in uproar; no one expected these two teams to find their footing and stand out at the start of the season, nor did anyone expect the Tennessee Titans to carry forward last season’s good form, with Derrick Henry continuing to shine; and even more unexpected was the Pittsburgh Steelers’ strong resurgence.

Indeed, no one should be underestimated; a new season brings new prospects and a fresh outlook.

In the National Conference, the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks are undefeated at the top.

The National Conference, which had always been in chaos like the Warring States, surprisingly returned to familiar territory, with quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson maintaining outstanding form, both leading their teams to continue their winning streaks and launching a strong second consecutive season offensive towards the Super Bowl.

Neither Brees’ New Orleans Saints nor Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers find it easy to break out from the National Conference.

Additionally, just like the Kansas City Chiefs’ end of their winning streak, Buffalo Bills’ loss to Tennessee Titans also marked the end of theirs.

Pressure piles layer upon layer on the Buffalo Bills, as this young team can clearly feel the league’s overwhelming focus on them, leading to a poor performance this week.

They faced Tennessee Titans and were defeated with a wide margin of "16:41".

Although the Tennessee Titans were in excellent form, in a battle between two tigers, one would be injured; nevertheless, the Buffalo Bills’ awful performance showed their lack of focus.

It’s clear that with the Tennessee Titans facing them, the Buffalo Bills’ players were already thinking about the upcoming week, focusing on the Kansas City Chiefs.

Undoubtedly, no one is more eager than the Buffalo Bills themselves to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs, but instead, they lost to the Tennessee Titans first.

Then—

It went crazy, collective madness ensued, bustling and tumultuous, social networks caught in overwhelming waves, and football fans lost all rationality.

Pittsburgh Steelers’ strong resurgence? The Tennessee Titans finally have a chance at the Super Bowl? The Seattle Seahawks return as championship contenders? The Green Bay Packers are the champions!

The league dynamics seem to be opening up, with all sorts of possibilities emerging, and with suspense over victory and championship returning prominently, fans are collectively celebrating.

Yet, "Buffalo Bills, hang in there!"

In the chaos and noise, the trolls and haters got excited one after another; this is the best opportunity to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs, to continue to destroy them. It’s the perfect time to push them into an abyss, not to be missed.

One loss is far from enough to exclude the Kansas City Chiefs from the Super Bowl contenders; they are still firmly at the top of the AFC West Division table, and relying solely on the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers, and Las Vegas Raiders is insufficient. Other competitors need to join in too.

Therefore, hope and expectations still lie on the Buffalo Bills, although the circumstances are slightly different.

"See, the pressure is gone because the undefeated aura is gone! Josh Allen, you can do it!"

"The Kansas City Chiefs started losing, unable to stop their decline; the Buffalo Bills don’t need to be nervous. Just believe in themselves, and they will achieve it."

"Breaking the deadlock is the hardest part, which that madman from Las Vegas Raiders has already finished. The Buffalo Bills just need to seize the opportunity."

"The timing, location, and human factors are all prepared, just waiting for the Kansas City Chiefs to tumble repeatedly."

"Josh Allen, the next station is the king! The road is already paved right in front of you."

The atmosphere didn’t weaken; instead, it exploded because of Kansas City Chiefs’ one crack opening, fueling battles among demons and fantasies fully rising.

Amidst the noise and clamor, a viewpoint rose rapidly and swept through the league like an army, spreading fast within and outside the league.

"Madden Curse".

A sentence is all it takes; no need for explanation or embellishment; everyone chants in unison as if worshiping a cult.

Who would have thought the Madden Curse would actually be effective?

Previously, the Kansas City Chiefs had won four consecutive games convincingly, with focus on Li Wei, yet no one picked bones from eggs; but now things are different, Li Wei’s statistics are instantly put under a microscope, scrutinized inside and out from every angle.

Truth be told, apart from the game against the Baltimore Ravens, for the other three victories and the game against the Las Vegas Raiders, Li Wei’s ball-carrying counts have significantly dropped, less than half the peak of the 2019 season.

When the Kansas City Chiefs were winning, it was strategy; Li Wei was the "strongest bait", and Reed consciously changed the team’s offensive strategy, adapting similar offensive setups into different variations, and tapping into more potentials requires Reed to break his conventions.

Reed considered Li Wei to be a player who foresaw the whole situation far ahead, with untapped potential yet remaining on him; even without carrying the ball, Li Wei plays a key role and helps to unlock Mahomes’ potential in second defensive reads.

But when the Kansas City Chiefs faced setbacks, it’s a vulnerability—

"Li Wei isn’t good anymore", "Li Wei is in a slump", "Reed clearly noticed it and deliberately reduced Li Wei’s carries".

Or rumors like "locker room fights erupted", "Li Wei and Mahomes jostling for locker room voice", "Kansas City Chiefs’ Offensive group mountains falling out", "Reed and Veach still chose the quarterback", "in the power struggle Running Back Levi still lost the proactive power".

Moreover, there are speculations that "Li Wei is being marginalized team-wise because of his great achievements causing envy."

Anyway, many conspiracy theories fully play imagination, words are unrestrained, no evidence needed, various rumors fly everywhere on social media.

No matter what, the roots of all speculations ultimately return to one key phrase:

"Madden Curse", the league-wide fearsome curse finally worked, and Li Wei couldn’t escape it and became the latest victim of the curse.

Rumors escalated further, "Li Wei injured, could be out for the season."