Through Week 11, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is a top choice for the NFL coach of the year award because of how he’s managed the team’s quarterback position and locker room this season. But at the end of the team’s 18-16 victory against the Baltimore Ravens, he showed he could be a candidate for the coach of the year award for his in-game decisions as well.
At the 1:06 mark of the fourth quarter, the Ravens needed a 2-point conversion to tie the score. But they didn’t get to run their play before Tomlin called a timeout.
The timeout came so close to the start of the snap, though, that the Ravens actually began running the play before they realized the officials blew the play dead.
Tomlin planned it exactly that way. With the late whistle, he saw the beginning of what Baltimore planned to run. It appeared as though Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was going to try a jump-pass to score the two points.
“It did kind of look like that, didn’t it?” Tomlin said coyly to reporters on November 18.
When asked a follow-up question on whether he had “Jackson jump-pass” on his mind during the timeout, Tomlin bluntly replied with only five words.
“You’re damn right I did,” he said.
After the timeout, the Ravens ran a different 2-point play, which the Steelers stopped. Pittsburgh then milked the rest of the clock on the next offensive possession to hold onto a 2-point victory.
Steelers’ Mike Tomlin Explained Why He Called a Timeout Before Ravens’ 2-pointer
Calling a defensive timeout before one play that’s likely to determine the outcome of the game can be tricky. While it can assist a defense in getting into a better position to stop one formation, it also allows the offense another opportunity to change their play.
But whether or not Baltimore was going to change its play after the timeout, Tomlin viewed the pause before the pivotal 2-point try as an advantage for his defense.
“I really wanted to look at their structure to see what mindset they were in and have an opportunity to maybe talk about it,” Tomlin told reporters on November 18. “Better ready our guys and maybe eliminate some other concepts that might be less relevant based on what it is that we’re looking at. That was the mindset.
“Whether or not they repeated their play or changed their play is not up to me.”
In summary, the Steelers were then prepared to stop a Jackson jump-pass. So instead, the Ravens ran Jackson wide to the left. But the play was not well executed, and it ended with Jackson throwing a desperation pass that fell incomplete.
Perhaps the Steelers would have stopped Baltimore’s attempt without calling a timeout. But the timeout appeared to better position Pittsburgh to hold onto its lead.
Steelers Ensured Lamar Jackson Didn’t Receive Another Chance
If the Ravens had tied the score with a 2-point conversion, the Steelers were going to have 1:06 to drive into field goal range. Kicker Chris Boswell had already made six field goals, including a 57-yarder.
So, perhaps the Steelers would have still won even with Baltimore scoring the 2-pointer.
But had the game gone into overtime, the Ravens probably would gained an advantage. Their touchdown drive to move within two points was their best possession of the second half. Had they won the coin toss, the Ravens could have won with another touchdown.
After the stopped 2-pointer, though, the Steelers offense made sure Jackson didn’t see the field again. The Steelers gained 10 yards on three running plays, moving the chains for a first down. The Ravens burned their three timeouts after each play, so they had no more ways to stop the clock.
With a late fourth-quarter 8-point lead, the Steelers had multiple ways to walk away with a win on November 17. But after giving up Baltimore’s touchdown, the easiest path to victory was stopping the 2-point conversion.
The Steelers appeared to do that, at least in part, thanks to Tomlin’s timeout.
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