It was just supposed to be a standard out route, a play with an expected outcome of about 1 yard after the catch.
Ravens wide receiver Tylan Wallace, who is better known for his special teams contributions, was focused on catching the ball. He typically plays less than 20% of the team’s offensive snaps as a player low down on the receiving depth chart. At his best, he earned 35% of the offensive snaps. So, when he got his chance Thursday night against the Bengals, he had to take it.
And he turned it into the decisive play in the Ravens’ 35-34 win.
Wallace successfully snagged the ball, but the chances he could do much more with the play beyond the 6-yard reception were low. Two Cincinnati Bengals were in position to stop him.
First, cornerback DJ Turner II came flying at him — and missed the tackle. As he spun away, Wallace didn’t mind that linebacker Logan Wilson was also closing in from the right. Instead, he looked ahead.
“I was like, ‘OK, I got some space here,’” Wallace said. “So just keep running — run as fast as I can.”
And he did, taking off down the left sideline, just barely maintaining his balance to stay in bounds. Wilson caught up, but Wallace pushed him off with one stiff arm. Then former teammate Geno Stone came flying in. Wallace stiff-armed him, too, once again barely staying in bounds.
From there, the final 30 yards were clear.
Wallace had been here before, in this exact spot. Last season, he was ready to field a punt after the Ravens took the Los Angeles Rams to overtime and made a stop. After catching the ball, he returned it 76 yards for a game-winning touchdown. The sprint occurred in the same place: along the left sideline from the harbor-side “Ravens” end zone toward the “Baltimore” end zone.
“It was crazy,” Wallace said. “It was like, kind of a pretty similar moment, actually, breaking one tackle, then coming down and staying up, staying in balance, keeping my balance. ... Once I had the free space, I thought, like, ‘Oh, wow, this is crazy.’”
Quarterback Lamar Jackson added that both plays happened while the Ravens were wearing purple.
“It’s his little magic uniform,” Jackson said. “He comes through when the lights are on [in] prime time. Shoutout to Tylan because that was wonderful.”
That punt return against the Rams earned Wallace a starting job on special teams last season. And the Ravens rewarded him for his efforts again after the 84-yard touchdown against the Bengals.
Prior to the touchdown, Wallace had only fielded some punts and made an 11-yard catch on a third-and-19 play that the Ravens were flagged on. He had just two targets all season for a total of 31 yards.
But, on the first play after the touchdown, Jackson hit Wallace for a 20-yard completion to bring his total to three catches for 115 yards. Wallace set career highs in single-game catches and yards.
Left tackle Ronnie Stanley and tight end Mark Andrews were blocking when Wallace pulled off the unlikely play.
Stanley did not see most of it because he ended up on the ground after what he felt was a really good block. But he looked up in time to admire the way Wallace stayed in bounds.
Andrews was one of the closest offensive players to Wallace on the field, and he was impressed but not surprised.
“Just a dog, man, he’s a dog, and he makes big-time plays,” Andrews said. “And Tylan doesn’t get a lot of love, but he should. He makes big-time plays, and he comes in clutch. And that was just an amazing play.”
Running back Derrick Henry commended Wallace on his ability to keep his balance and stay in bounds. Wallace joked that he learned the stiff arm from studying Henry.
He’s a perfect example of what the Ravens’ offense can be at its best. Coach John Harbaugh, offensive coordinator Todd Monken and different offensive players have said all season that their identity is their versatility and their multitude of weapons. Harbaugh has emphasized that different games will feature different players — Rashod Bateman may look like wide receiver one in one game, and Zay Flowers might look like it in the next.
“This offense, I think, is the most complete offense I’ve been around in my time in the league, and being able to attack people from all different angles and also just compete at a high level at every position,” Stanley said.
Thursday night, it was Wallace’s turn. And his teammates were more than happy to concede the targets to him.
“It felt good,” Bateman said. “Not even just myself — a lot of these guys put in countless hours just to feel that, and you never know when you’ll feel it again. To see Tylan go out there and have a career game — I love shit like that. He works his ass off — he really does, so it feels good to see.”
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