The 10 Most Impactful Plays of Week 11
4. The Classic Fullback Fade
Win Probability Added: +28.22
NEP: +6.34
Oakland Raiders fullback Jamize Olawale is in his fifth year in the NFL, and he has never been a star or the focal point of his offense. For one thing, he was stuck behind also-talented and underused fullback/H-back Marcel Reece for years, and relegated to special teams duty for much of his early career. The past two years, though, he’s seen his role drastically increase as a trusted short-yardage runner, pass protector, and check-down option.
Despite his presence as a reliable contributor, no one saw his big play in Week 11 coming. Early in the fourth quarter, the Raiders were stalling out as the staunch Houston Texans defense was rallying to keep their hard-fought lead in this game. Quarterback Derek Carr's passes were finding the turf at Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca much more often than they were the gloves of teammates. So what do they do? On 1st-and-10, the Raiders send Olawale into a wheel route out of the backfield, Carr hits him with a pass that he adjusts to, shakes his coverage, and then burns the secondary into the end zone for a 75-yard touchdown reception. The fullback wheel route: still undefeated.
