Always Prospering Media

Steelers 17, Ravens 10

When I wrote last week, previewing the matchup between Pittsburgh and Baltimore, I wrote that the Steelers would need to get pressure on Lamar Jackson and stop the run in order to have success. In the early going, they did neither and found themselves behind 10-0 in a hurry. However, as TJ Watt closed in on Jackson to record his second sack of the afternoon and slam the door shut in a decisive AFC North division win, those 10 points proved to be all they surrendered. The Steelers defense did what it had to and kept the team in the game from the first quarter to the last to allow the sluggish offense a chance to inflict damage from within striking distance of the lead. The Ravens accounted for 335 yards of total offense and the defense ultimately bent, but never broke in this contest. Baltimore certainly moved the ball, they averaged exactly five yards per offensive snap but timely stops on 4th downs as well as a high success rate on 3rd downs helped Pittsburgh get off the field when they had to. Rookie cornerback Joey Porter also came up with an enormous interception in the end zone as the Ravens were threatening to push the game out of reach. On the ensuing possession, the Black and Gold’s offense put together arguably the biggest drive of the young season so far. They went 80 yards on 8 plays in just under three minutes. They converted two third downs through the air, to Allen Robinson and George Pickens, respectably. Then, Kenny Pickett found George Pickens down the field on the sideline for a touchdown strike of forty-one yards with Marlon Humphrey in coverage. The attempted two point conversion failed. The Steelers recorded just three sacks, but one of them included a strip sack of Lamar Jackson, courtesy of Alex Highsmith, which was recovered by Watt. After that, Pittsburgh made Baltimore use their timeouts before kicking a Field Goal to extend the lead to 17-10, which proved to be the final score in this contest. 

What Went Right? 

The Steelers defense held Baltimore’s explosive offense in check throughout the afternoon. Lamar Jackson wasn’t a huge factor running the ball, with the exception of a twenty six yard scamper he had on the game’s first possession. Gus Edwards also wasn’t a large contributor for Baltimore on the ground. The same could be said about Justice Hill, who did account for the only Baltimore touchdown on a fourteen yard rush. In the air, the Steelers allowed a moderate 236 passing yards from Jackson while intercepting him once and not allowing a TD through the air. Jackson’s stats would have been significantly better had Baltimore’s receiving core provided him with some help. Zay Flowers and Nelson Agholor both dropped touchdown passes in crucial moments in Sunday’s game while Agholor also fumbled (BAL did recover). Nonetheless, the Steelers defense, aided by Baltimore mistakes, were able to keep the game close and ultimately close out another win against their AFC North rival. Pittsburgh has won 6 of the last 7 games against Baltimore. 

What Went Wrong?

I probably don’t actually need to tell you what went wrong for you to be able to assume. The offense was again extremely sluggish, underwhelming, and disappointing for the entire duration of this game. The Steelers scored their first, and go ahead, touchdown with 1:20 remaining in the 4th Quarter. That means that they were held out of the end zone for 58:40 seconds of a 60:00 game. Furthermore, the team never found the end zone a week ago in a 30-6 loss in Houston. Thus, in the Steelers’ last eight quarters of football, they scored one touchdown and it took them 118:40 of the 120:00 minutes of football played in those quarters to finally break the plane. It is absolutely pathetic and unacceptable and despite the team recording a much needed victory, there needs to start being some accountability in the 412. Regardless, the team obviously did enough to get the job done and move to 3-2 on the season. Also worth noting: Pittsburgh was able to win Sunday without key contributors on both sides of the ball. Defensively, DT Cam Heyward is still recovering from his groin injury while on offense, the Steelers were without three starters in TE Pat Freiermuth and OT Dan Moore as well as WR Diontae Johnson. More importantly, however, they also moved to 2-0 in the division and currently have the lead in the North heading into the BYE week. Pittsburgh will have the week off to heal up and recover before going across the country to play the Los Angeles Rams in SoFi Stadium.

What’s Up Next?

Steelers – BYE WEEK 

Ravens @ Titans in LONDON, 9:30am on NFLN

written by Andrew Petrino.

Photo by JOE SARGENT / GETTY IMAGES