The 10 Most Impactful Plays of Week 9
3. Be Like Mike (Wallace)
Win Probability Added: +16.73
NEP: +7.97
What a world we live in, where Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Mike Wallace seems to snare 70- to 90-yard touchdowns on a weekly basis. I thought the whole point of being a boom-or-bust player was that they were consistently inconsistent, but Wallace has dazzled regularly this season. He’s not even being targeted on long bombs all that much; his 19 deep targets are tied for just 15th, and he has just nine receptions that have gone for 15 yards or more. He’s on pace for over 1,200 yards and 8 touchdowns, though, which is a heck of an achievement considering his usage.
But consistency doesn’t mean you can’t pull off explosive plays like Wallace did in Week 9. On a simple slant route at the end of the first quarter, Wallace burned his cover man off the line, caught the pass from quarterback Joe Flacco in stride, and simply turned on the jets down the sideline as he turned a 10-yard play into a 95-yard score. The sweetest part? It was against the division rival Pittsburgh Steelers, one of his former teams.
