For the second-year in a row, the Baltimore Ravens lost a heartbreaker to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field.
What a game. It was another classic matchup to add to the memory book in the rivalry between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. But for the second year in a row, the Ravens leave Heinz Field in utter disappointment. This time it came at the hands of a 39-38 loss to their arch-rivals once again.
From the start, it looked like the Ravens didn’t want any part of this game. The offense came out strong on the opening drive but a terrible throw by Joe Flacco was easily intercepted by Sean Davis. If Flacco is going to make that throw it’s got to either be on target or out the back of the end zone. You expect more from a veteran and the Steelers marched down the field two possessions in a row to take a 14-0.
Out of thin air, Marty Mornhinweg finally remembered he had Alex Collins in his backfield and started running the football. Crazy enough, the Ravens had a ton of success on the ground. They rushed for 150 total yards and three touchdowns. Collins racked up 120 of those on his best performance of the season. He’s now scored five touchdowns in the last four games and is making his case to be the running back of the future for this team.
With the dominant ground game, the passing lanes opened up. Again, a crazy concept to think about (sarcasm) but when the Steelers had to focus on Collins, the play-action pass worked. Flacco finished the game 20 of 35 for 269 yards, two touchdowns, and the interception.
It’s the best we’ve seen the offense play all season and they’ve now scored over 35+ points in two straight games. Who saw that coming?
But while the offense shined, the defense was a complete mess. Ben Roethlisberger threw for 506 yards while Antonio Brown torched Brandon Carr and the Ravens secondary for 213 yards of his own. Jimmy Smith’s absence was more than noticeable but the defensive struggles went way past him. Defensive coordinator Dean Pees failed to make in-game adjustments and it ultimately killed the defense. There was no pass rush up front and Roethlisberger had all day to throw the ball.
The Ravens held a nine-point lead with just over six minutes left to play and couldn’t close out the game on either side of the football. Just like we saw on Christmas Day last year, the Steelers drove down the field for the eventual game-winning score. Instead of an Antonio Brown touchdown this time, it was a 46-yard field goal from Chris Boswell.
With 42-seconds left, the Ravens mustered up a five-play, six-yard drive, that ended with a strip sack on Joe Flacco. As time expired, there was no other feeling but disappointment.
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There will be more analysis tomorrow but this was a tough pill to swallow for a team that could’ve easily come away with a win tonight.