Ebony Bird roundtable: Our favorite Ravens-Steelers memories

The Ravens-Steelers rivalry has brought us some great memories over the years. Our writing staff gives our favorite moments.

Sunday features one of the best rivalries in the NFL. It will be the first meeting between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers this season. The rivalry is just over 20-years old, but one that’s rich with some great games and memories.

The Steelers lead the all-time series 25-21 but that doesn’t do the rivalry justice. Just about every time these two teams meet up it’s going to be a low-scoring, close game. In the last 18 meetings, 12 have been decided by three points or less. With so many great games, it’s nearly impossible to choose a favorite memory. Our writing staff here at Ebony Bird did our best to select from all of the great memories.

Here are our favorite memoriesfrom the Ravens-Steelers rivalry.

Joe Schiller

Trying to pick a favorite game from the Ravens-Steelers rivalry is like trying to choose the best episode from your favorite TV show. There’s good and bad episodes throughout the seasons, but you always have that one that sticks out to you. For me, it was the second time these two teams met during the 2011 NFL season.

I remember this game vividly. The game was on Sunday night and I had a test in school the next day. I did all my homework during the day knowing I’d be up late watching the game, and boy did my hard work pay off. The game was an all-time class between these two teams. The Ravens entered 5-2, the Steelers 6-2 with plenty of playoff implications on the line. It was grudge match in the first two quarters as three Billy Cundiff field goals gave the Ravens a 9-6 lead heading into halftime.

With all the momentum on their side heading into the fourth quarter, the Ravens fell flat. My family and I watched in disbelief as Ben Roethlisberger led the Steelers offense on two touchdown drives to give them a 20-16 lead. After trading unsuccessful drives, the Ravens were pinned on their own eight-yard line with just over two minutes left to play. And thus, Joe “Cool” Flacco was born.

I was on the edge of my seat every single play. A 10-yard Anquan Boldin catch on 4th and 1 continued the drive with just 50 seconds left. Six plays later, Joe Flacco stepped up in the pocket and found Torrey Smith for the game winning 26-yard touchdown. I jumped out of my chair with joy. With their backs against the wall on the road, Joe Flacco led the Ravens on one of the most perfect game-winning drives you’ll ever see.

This game is a top-five moment in the rivalry and my personal favorite. That was a time when we saw the “elite” Joe Flacco.