Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
Points have been tough to come by for Baltimore today, but this trick play did not help their cause
Points have been tough to come by Sunday in Baltimore.
In the matchup between the Denver Broncos — one of the league’s worst offenses — and the Baltimore Ravens, it has been all field goals through more than three quarters. Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson has yet to lead his team into the end zone, despite completing 14 of 17 passes for 139 yards to this point in the game.
As for the Ravens, Lamar Jackson was ruled out with a knee injury in the first half, and backup Tyler Huntley has struggled in relief, throwing an interception as the Ravens cannot maintain any consistency on offense.
That lack of consistency was perhaps the reason offensive coordinator Greg Roman dialed up this reverse pass early in the fourth quarter.
He might want to leave it out of next year’s playbook:
After taking the snap, Huntley hands off to wide receiver Devin Duvernay. The exchange was awkward, as it seems like neither player took the right path to their mesh point. But they were able to execute the exchange, allowing Duvernay to flip to fellow receiver James Proche II.
Rather than attack around the edge, however, Proche pulls up to try and connect with running back Kenyan Drake, who slow-played a wheel route out of the backfield and deep downfield.
The problem? No one was fooled. At all. Not only did linebacker Jonathon Cooper match Drake’s route out of the backfield, but two more Denver players were in position, including safety Justin Simmons, who pulled in the football for his second interception of the game.
His first came midway through the third quarter, as he executed this toe-tap along the sideline for the turnover:
The Ravens were struggling on offense even before this week, and losing Jackson certainly did not make things easier for them.
But this play is probably something they should leave out of next year’s edition.
