Zay Flowers knew exactly how many yards he needed.
As the Ravens were finishing off a 34-17 win over the Steelers, Flowers sat just 33 yards away from his first 1,000-yard season.
Leading by 14 and needing one solid drive to ice the victory, Flowers was split on telling Lamar Jackson how close he was to the milestone, but he decided to approach his quarterback on the sideline.
"I kept walking up to him," Flowers said with a smile. "I didn't want to walk up to him and say it, because we were locked in, but I was like, 'Hey, let's get that high fade real quick so I can get that 1,000.'"
Flowers got his wish and Jackson delivered. On third-and-5, Jackson delivered a perfect deep ball to Flowers, who caught it and broke a tackle to go into Steelers territory for a 49-yard gain.
The play gave Flowers an even 100 yards on the day as he reached 1,000 yards this season and helped Baltimore punch its ticket to the postseason. Flowers now has 1,016 yards this year.
"It's just everybody around me," Flowers said. "From Rashod Bateman, to the O-line, I appreciate everybody that helped me get there – [Offensive Coordinator] Coach [Todd] Monken [and] Lamar trusting me. It was a goal of mine, and I was able to cross it, and we were able to get the win, too."
Going into the season, one of Flowers' goals was to break 1,000 yards. The last Ravens wide receiver to reach the mark was Marquise "Hollywood" Brown in 2021 (1,006 yards) and before that it was Mike Wallace (1,017 yards) in 2016.
So when Flowers saw Jackson's dime flying through the Baltimore sky, he knew that was his chance to get over the mark in style.
"I've got to go get this one," Flowers said of what he thought when the ball was in the air. "It was perfect. [It] landed right in my breadbasket."
Flowers is having a terrific second season in Baltimore. In Year 1, he set franchise records for most receptions (77) and receiving yards (858) by a rookie, and his encore has been even better.
The joystick receiver is one of Jackson's favorite targets and has taken over games this season, including a stretch with four 100-plus yard games in five weeks. Now, he's in the 1,000-yard club.
"It means a lot just to have a 1,000 [yard] receiver," Jackson said. "... Shoutout to Zay. ... That's my boy right there, that's my guy. [He's] my little brother."
Success in the NFL isn't always linear, but Flowers is building off his rookie season in a big way, and it's no secret how much reaching 1,000 yards meant to him.
"Oh, he wanted it bad," fellow wide receiver Tylan Wallace said with a laugh. "He wanted it real bad, for sure, like any other receiver would."
