Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
On an NFL Sunday filled with incredible moments, this completion from Jordan Love to Jayden Reed stands out
Sunday was a bizarre day of NFL football.
We had multiple 100-yard touchdowns in the late-afternoon window, one a 102-yard fumble return from the Seattle Seahawks, the other a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown from Patrick Surtain of the Denver Broncos. We saw the Arizona Cardinals upset the San Francisco 49ers, the Jacksonville Jaguars finally get into the win column, and when it was all said and done, it went into the books as one of the longest NFL Sundays in history. That was thanks to a game in London that kicked off at 9:30 a.m. Eastern, and a weather-delayed game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football that did not kick off until almost 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
On a Sunday filled with the incredible and implausible, one of the more improbable completions was a long throw from Jordan Love to Jayden Reed, a throw that is worth another look now that the All-22 is available.
With the Green Bay Packers facing a 2nd and 10 early against the Los Angeles Rams, Love aligned under center and carried out a run fake before looking downfield. Deep downfield, that is.
Reed, aligned in a tight stack to the right side of the formation, runs a deep route splitting the safeties, as the Rams show single-high coverage before the snap but roll into Cover 2.
Now, with two deep safeties throwing the “safety splitter” to Reed is the right, well, read. But Love’s throw leads the receiver toward the sideline, rather than deep down the middle of the field. That brings cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon, who dropped deep as one of the two deep defenders, back into the play.
Ultimately, Reed finds himself surrounded by a trio of Rams as he tracks down this throw from Love:
According to tracking data this pass had a completion probability of less than 15%. But Reed is able to get under this throw from Love, giving the Packers a huge gain early in the contest:
The end zone angle, and in particular this image, capture just how improbable this completion was:
According to the NFL’s tracking data, out of the 82 pass attempts to this point in Week 5 with a completion probability less than 15%, just 15 were completed. I know, I was told there would be no math too …
On an NFL Sunday filled with improbable moments, this completion certainly stands out.
