1st and 14.
Ball on their own 4 yard line.
One point lead.
3 minutes and 24 seconds left in the game.
This was the situation late in Miami’s opening day contest against the New England Patriots. The play call came in – a run. Tua Tagovailoa came to the line of scrimmage and surveyed the defense – noticing that the Patriots had stacked the box with defenders. The run play wasn’t going to be effective.
These are the moments that can completely change the outlook in a game. Hell, these are the moments that can completely change the outlook on your entire season when you consider that you’re playing a divisional opponent in their home stadium – a stadium in which you have had little success for the past two decades.