Trevin Wallace played a key role in the Carolina Panthers’ 13-6 win over the New York Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium. The inside linebacker found himself covering Jets receiver Allen Lazard during a critical first-and-10 play as the third quarter wound down.
Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn described the moment when Wallace looked to him, apparently confused about his coverage assignment. “He was matched up on the receiver and he was looking at me like, ‘You want to switch?’ Because I was on a running back,” Horn said after the game. “I’m like, ‘Bro, just stay on him, you (run a) 4.4, you probably faster than him.'”
Wallace recalled thinking differently: “Bruh they payed you all that money,” Wallace said, referring to Horn’s recent contract extension. “You better cover the receiver! But he looked at me and was like ‘You got it?’ And hey, if he trust me, he trust me.”
On the play, Jets running back Breece Hall took a direct snap and pitched it to Isaiah Davis before Davis flicked it back to quarterback Tyrod Taylor. Taylor then targeted Lazard deep downfield. For a moment, Wallace thought Hall had kept the ball and let his guard down before realizing Lazard was breaking free.
“What was crazy was, when I looked I was like, ‘OK it’s a reverse.’ Then said, ‘Hold up, wait a minute, running back ain’t got the ball,'” Wallace explained.
When he saw Taylor preparing to throw toward Lazard along the sideline, Wallace reacted quickly. “I said ‘Oh dang, I got to run.’ So I was like ‘Dude just run, hope for the best,'” Wallace said.
Panthers safety Lathan Ransom expressed confidence in Wallace’s speed: “Of course, he 4.4,” Ransom said of Wallace’s time in the 40-yard dash—though officially recorded as 4.51 seconds at the Combine.
Nickel Chau Smith-Wade noted that Wallace’s high school experience playing multiple positions helped him in pass coverage: “Yeah, he played receiver in high school so he better have PBU skills,” Smith-Wade said.
Safety Tre’von Moehrig added praise for his teammate: “Oh he’s like that for sure,” Moehrig said about Wallace’s athletic ability. “I mean I watched these guys since I got out here so I see their ability and yeah he’s like that. He’s special.”
Wallace admitted some doubt about catching up with Lazard but credited determination—and prayer—for making up ground in time: “Ahhhhh,” he responded when asked if he knew he’d make it in time. “I was praying to God, ‘Just run just run!’ I didn’t even look back…I was like run that’s all I was thinking just run.”
His effort resulted in a key pass breakup near what could have been an open touchdown for New York. On the following play Jaycee Horn intercepted a pass in the end zone—a highlight one-handed grab—to keep points off the board.
“Trevin’s a hell of a player,” Horn stated. “Just to see the growth he made…the last couple of weeks…when everybody was tough on him early on I’m super proud of him and I think he’s just going to keep getting better.”
“Next play Jaycee got a pick,” Wallace noted after his own contribution. “Good things come to those who run. And I ran.”
