As Tylan Wallace ran down the sideline en route to an 84-yard touchdown Thursday night against the Bengals, he had a case of déjà vu.
Last year, wearing the same color rush uniforms, tiptoeing down the same sideline, Wallace beat the Los Angeles Rams in overtime with a walk-off punt return touchdown.
When Wallace was called upon Thursday night against the Bengals, he was ready once again.
With the Ravens trailing by seven in the fourth quarter against the Bengals, Lamar Jackson found Wallace for what looked like a short pickup, but Wallace couldn't be stopped.
The fourth-year wide receiver broke three tackles, including a stiff-arm, and tight-roped down the sideline, toeing the white paint with every step, all the way to the end zone.
It was the big moment of Wallace's big night as he caught three passes for 115 yards in the Ravens' 35-34 win. Coming into the game, he had just 98 receiving yards in his career.
"It feels great," Wallace said on topping 100 yards for the first time. "Like I said, I've always been happy to be able to make a difference for the team, make a difference in the game, so to be able to do something like that [for] the first time in my career, it feels awesome."
Since getting drafted in the fourth round in 2021, Wallace has carved out a role in Baltimore on special teams. Primarily getting touches as a punt returner, Wallace hasn't been asked to do much in the pass game, but he knows the ball can come whenever.
"I think it's more so a mentality. You just never know," Wallace said. "I feel like early in my career, I've had those opportunities where I was out there, and I feel like either things didn't go my way, or you can say I wasn't ready for those moments.
"I guess you could say experience. First couple years, [I] didn't really take advantage of those opportunities. So now I know, always, you just never know when your moment's going to come."
While Thursday's play didn't end the game last like year's game-winner versus the Rams, who knows if the Ravens win without it.
"It was crazy, it was [a] pretty similar moment actually," Wallace said. "Breaking one tackle ... staying up, staying in bounds, keeping my balance. It was definitely good flashbacks for sure.
"Once I had the free space, I thought, 'Oh wow this is crazy, this is like the exact same.' It was crazy. I'm just blessed to be able to have a moment like that. It was awesome."
The Ravens got off to a slow start offensively, not scoring on six of their first seven drives and trailing by 14 early in the second half. But the game flipped when cornerback Marlon Humphrey forced a fumble on Bengals running back Chase Brown.
Baltimore scored off the turnover, forced a punt, and then came Wallace's play.
"[When] you go out and you make a play like that, we have the momentum now," Wallace said. "[When] you watch other guys make plays, that makes you want to make plays, so seeing him do that, it just made everybody else want to go out [and say], 'Alright, now it's my turn.'"
Thursday's game was a microcosm of always staying ready. Even though his role can shift every game, Wallace is always prepared.
Last season, Wallace had his chance and responded in a big way, and on Thursday, he didn't miss when Jackson called his number.
"He comes through when the lights are on [in] primetime," Jackson said. "Shoutout to Tylan because that was wonderful."
