Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry
If you want to take down Goliath, you’ve got to pull out all the stops, and that’s what the Cinderella Tennessee Titans did in their divisional round matchup with the Baltimore Ravens, taking down the NFL’s top team, 28-12, in a major upset that sent shockwaves around the league.
Leading 14-6 and facing a critical third and goal at the three-yard line midway through the third quarter, the Titans dug deep into their playbook with running back Derrick Henry executing a successful jump-pass over the line to wide receiver Corey Davis in the back of the end zone for a touchdown, that gave the Titans a stunning 21-6 lead over the No. 1 seed in the AFC.
The shocking trick play began with Henry taking a direct snap as QB Marcus Mariota moved in motion. Henry then took a few strides forward as if he was going to rush but then caught the Ravens off guard, as he jumped up and threw a perfect pass to Davis who was able to make the catch and managed to get both feet inbounds.
The TD was the first one thrown by a running back in the NFL postseason since 1987. The play was reminiscent of the jump-pass TDs that Tim Tebow made famous during his days at the University of Florida when he led the Gators to two national championships.
Henry, who led the NFL in rushing yards this season, has been an absolute beast in the postseason, carrying the Titans to an improbable berth in next week’s AFC Championship game.
Derrick Henry is the first player in NFL history with 180+ rushing yards in three straight games
(via @CBSSports)
Along with the passing TD, Henry rushed for a whopping 195 yards on 30 carries. Last week, Henry ran for 182 yards on 34 carries against the league’s top defense, as the Titans upset the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots in the wild card round.
The 2019 Pro Bowler topped the 180-yard rushing mark for the third consecutive game on Saturday night, becoming the first player in NFL history to accomplish such a feat.
With the win, the Titans advance to next Sunday’s AFC Championship, where they will travel to play the winner of Sunday’s Kansas City Chiefs-Houston Texans divisional round matchup.
Lamar Jackson Turns the Ball Over Three Times in Ravens First Defeat Since September
The favorite to take home the NFL MVP award this season will be watching the rest of the playoffs from home.
After a banner regular season that saw the Ravens run roughshod over the league en route to a 14-2 record, their superstar QB Lamar Jackson struggled against the Titans’ defense on Saturday night.
Jackson was intercepted twice and lost a fumble in his second consecutive postseason loss. Coming into Saturday’s game, Jackson had only eight turnovers for the entire 2019 season.
The first-team All-Pro QB went 21-of-59 for 365 yards and recorded a 63.2 passer rating – his second-worst this season.
Despite the loss, Lamar Jackson still gave it everything he had:
💪 365 pass yards
💪 143 rush yards
He is the 1st player in NFL history with 300 pass yards and 100 rush yards in a postseason game.
You can’t fault Jackson for not leaving it all on the field though, as the dynamic star also rushed for 143 yards on 20 carries.
.@lj_era8 gets the @Ravens inside the 20. #RavensFlock #NFLPlayoffs
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The Ravens’ regular-season dominance led them to the No. 1 seed for the first time in team history and they were riding a 12-game winning streak before running into the Cinderella Titans on Saturday.