Dominate the Super Bowl-Chapter 334 Between a rock and a hard place at 333

Old Oak Tavern.

Standing behind the bar, Charles Vester looked helplessly at Provo, raising his hand to stop other fans, staring back at Provo's helpless face.

Vester knew that Provo's asthma had relapsed last week. He couldn't continue working at the refinery temporarily, otherwise, he might lose his life there, and next week's rent was looming; last night, Provo had nearly died on the streets, and the winter in Kansas seemed exceptionally long.

It wasn't that Provo wasn't trying, but…in the grandeur of the era, their struggles seemed unable to change anything—

Didn't Provo want the Kansas City Chiefs to win in the playoffs?

Of course not.

No one hoped more than Provo that the team could advance and light a glimmer of hope; but he was scared, he had faced so much disappointment that now, even harboring hope became cautious, fearing yet another disappointment. His world was already on the brink of collapse, a bit more might just shatter it, and then he would forever stay in the winter of 2017, unable to move on.

The attacks, the negativity, were all just a defense mechanism, armored up layer by layer, hiding his scars.

"Stop, everyone stop," Vester tried to control the situation.

The other fans quieted down for the moment, but didn't expect Provo to speak again.

"Haven't we been through enough?"

"Embracing hope, fully confident, cheering behind them time and again, fighting side by side with them, entrusting all our passion and hopes onto the team."

"But what did we get?"

"Disappointment. Time and again, over and over."

As he spoke, Provo became anguished—

This season, hope was rekindled, but the brighter the dawn of hope, the more turbulent the emotions of gain and loss, the struggle and turmoil were just too painful.

He no longer had the strength to endure such pain.

"I've had enough."

"It's just... it's just that I don't want you all to be disappointed," he managed to say.

"Hah,"

Looking up, Provo revealed a mocking smile.

Seeing the tavern stir again, but this time, before anyone else could speak, Vester had already interrupted Provo.

"Shut up!"

Provo was stunned.

"Chris, it's not just you who's immersed in pain, we all are."

"Do you support the team just because they can bring victory? Just because of the championship? Damn it, if that's the case, you should be supporting New England, I don't know how many championships they've won. Four? Five? Or six?"

"I don't care."

"Because it doesn't matter at all."

"I support the team because they are my life, they struggle, they fight, just like the thousands and thousands of ordinary people in Kansas, they fail, they get discouraged, they encounter setbacks, but they never give up, they refuse to surrender."

"Yes, we may not win the playoffs, we might still lose in the first round, competitive sports aren't guaranteed, but that doesn't affect my support for them, I want to fight alongside them."

"Have you forgotten?"

"Against the Steelers, we fought till the last moment for a reverse kill; facing the Raiders, we endured the last desperate two minutes together." Find adventures on novelbuddy

"When we had six consecutive losses, we all thought the season was over prematurely; but the team didn't give up the fight, do you remember Li Wei's long touchdown run at Arrowhead Stadium against the Raiders?"

"It's moments like these that make us believe in life's hope, to never give up."

West took a deep breath.

"So, in the playoffs, I will still be here fighting with them, facing all the results calmly, without any regrets,"

"If you don't want to, you can leave the tavern now."

Provo was stunned, raised his head to look at West, and then turned to the silent but resolute faces in front of him, united against him, as a thousand words got stuck in his throat.

Then, Provo ultimately didn't say much, stood up, and left the bar.

Standing at the door of the tavern, Provo quietly said, "You will be heartbroken."

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Without pausing, Provo pushed the door open and left.

The door swung.

A bone-chilling cold air hit him in the face as Provo stood at the door, his eyes revealing a sense of bewilderment.

He thought he might cry, but tragically, his eyes were as dry as the Sahara Desert, not a single tear flowed, just staring ahead, his mind overwhelmed with thoughts, eventually trudging forward with heavy steps, shoulders slumped, walking head down towards a gray expanse in the biting cold of winter.

So, could the Kansas City Chiefs really break the playoff curse?

"Within the League" and the Old Oak Tavern... weren't much better in comparison.

After all, the playoffs were fundamentally different from the regular season.

Whether it was the randomness and suddenness of single-elimination games, the encounter of titans in a new stage after a long season, or the presence of both pressure and motivation in the fierce quest for the championship, everything made the playoffs full of variables, always requiring consideration of unpredictable "uncertain factors."

Naturally, pre-game analysis was also full of variables, and all teams were the same, the Kansas City Chiefs were no exception.

Bart stated, conflicted.

The Kansas City Chiefs... were just a hammer, after all, with that team and that Li Wei, Bart had never had a moment's peace this season.

The memory of being bashed, still vivid, too painful to look back at, barely figuring out some things by the end of the regular season, but what about the playoffs?

After much thought, weighing carefully, Bart still did not dare to make a light assertion.

"...Blair, your expression looks like you're defusing a mine, calm down, calm down," joked the show host, Crosby.

Bart: Can't manage a smile.

In fact, it was like defusing a mine, nerve-wracking, alright!

But looking at the expressions of the other peers in the program, Bart also realized he couldn't keep embarrassing himself on a show broadcast across the North American continent.

Taking a deep breath, Bart clenched his teeth and accepted it.

"Personally, I'm not optimistic about the Kansas City Chiefs."

Ultimately, he made a choice, no regrets after the move.

"I know, the Kansas City Chiefs are an unknown factor this season; they beat three strong opponents in the first phase of the season, the New England Patriots, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Pittsburgh Steelers; without a doubt, these three victories are very valuable."

The three teams were respectively the top seed of the American League, the top seed of the National Conference, and the second seed of the American League.

"But, entering the mid-season, the performance of the Kansas City Chiefs became unstable, the six-game losing streak was due to the team not maintaining the mentality of a strong team when facing weaker teams, still lacking intensity in crucial moments."

"Even though they ended the season with four consecutive wins, all four teams were middle-ranked League teams that did not make the playoffs, and three of those wins were within the AFC West."

"I won't say they are a pseudo-strong team, but the fact is, the Kansas City Chiefs' playoff spot lacks persuasiveness."

"Entering the playoffs, such shortcomings will further magnify; merely relying on one or two players' individual performances will not turn the situation around, after all, they lack an elite quarterback."

"Moreover, they will face a tough challenge in the wild card game —"

The Tennessee Titans.