Zay Flowers was a difference-maker in the Baltimore Ravens’ offense during a stellar rookie season.
Unfortunately, the difference he made in only a matter of minutes during Sunday’s AFC Championship Game contributed heavily to the Ravens’ disappointing 17-10 season-ending defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs.
With the Ravens trailing 17-7 near the end of the third quarter, Flowers gained 54 yards on a dazzling catch-and-run play from quarterback Lamar Jackson. But he immediately gave 15 yards back when he was flagged for taunting Chiefs cornerback L’Jarius Sneed.
Four plays later, Sneed got his payback on Flowers. With the Ravens on the Chiefs’ 9-yard line, Jackson hit an open Flowers on a crossing route over the middle, and Flowers immediately turned upfield, heading for the end zone.
Diving for the goal line with the ball outstretched in both hands, Sneed came and knocked the ball loose just before Flowers broke the plane of the goal line. Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie recovered the fumble, Flowers only one all season, in the end zone for a touchback.
Then returning to the sidelines after the game-altering play, Flowers cut his hand while slamming it on the bench in frustration.
From that point on, Jackson threw an interception in the end zone on the Ravens’ ensuing drive — their third turnover of the day — and they could manage a field goal no more than Justin Tucker’s 43-yard field goal with 2:34 left in the game.
After a season in which the Ravens finished with the NFL’s best record and looked unstoppable at times, Flowers was left to feel the bitter sting of a defeat that he helped ensure.
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Zay Flowers was an impact player as a rookie
There’s no question that Zay Flowers has a bright future as an NFL wide receiver.
Drafted No. 22 overall out of Boston College last April, Flowers made an immediate impact as Jackson’s favorite target. Flowers led the Ravens in receptions (77) and receiving yards (858) while scoring five touchdowns.
He fell short of making the NFL’s all-rookie team because Puka Nacua of the Los Angeles Rams and Jordan Addison of the Minnesota Vikings produced better overall numbers. But Flowers’ speed and quickness in the open field make him a headache for opposing teams to defend.
In Sunday’s game, he finished with five receptions for 115 yards and scored the Ravens’ only touchdown of the game on a 30-yard strike from Jackson in the first quarter.
But instead of talking about a trip to the Super Bowl, Flowers spent his postgame interview answering questions about his costly mistakes.
After the game, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh showed support for Flowers, saying the rookie receiver did what he was supposed to do.
“We coach two hands when you reach for the end zone,” Harbaugh said. “He had two hands on the ball.”
Great players learn from adversity and don’t repeat their mistakes. Given the magnitude of the game, Zay Flowers will certainly never forget them.