Malik Heath gets redemption on first NFL touchdown
Heath and second-year receiver Samori Toure each saw a spike in offensive playing time with Christian Watson sidelined with the hamstring injury he sustained in last Sunday’s 27-19 win over Kansas City.
All seven of Heath’s catches, totaling 79 yards, have come over Green Bay’s last four contests. Against Detroit last month, the 6-foot-2, 213-pound receiver caught four passes for 46 yards on just 11 offensive snaps.
With Green Bay looking to rally for its fourth straight victory, Heath desperately wanted to make a play for Love and the offense. After Pinnock knocked the ball from Heath’s grasp, the rookie left no doubt on the very next play on third-and-goal.
“I was just waiting on him to get up and signal it,” said Heath of the official. “I knew I hit the pylon because the route, you gotta get inside the goal line before you break it out. I was just waiting on the ref to get up and signal.”
Heath said he was on his knee praying his first NFL score would be enough to give Green Bay the victory, but the Giants marched 57 yards on eight plays to set up Randy Bullock’s game-winning 37-yard field goal.
Still, receiver Romeo Doubs was proud of how Heath responded to not catching the first pass from Love, a play in which the Packers quarterback climbed the pocket to find Heath.
“I salute him, man,” Doubs said. “The very first one, it was in his hands. It was incomplete in a very critical situation. So it was up to not just me but all the other receivers to surround him in that huddle to keep his hopes up because that’s what this league is about.
“The best foot forward in that situation is to give him his confidence back so he can continue to go out there and make plays like you saw.”
First appeared on www.packers.com
