3 takeaways from Ravens Week 18 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers
By Jihad Miller
2. Superstars mask mistakes
Even with all of the injuries this team has endured, they had many golden opportunities to win this football game.
Not only this game, but in five of their last six games, the Ravens lost all of them by at most three points. Turnovers and self-inflicted miscues cost them a chance to continue their season. It’s been a recurring trend all season long.
The fact they were in so many close games shows the incredible amount of depth this team has. However, when their superstar Lamar Jackson went down, that was the beginning of the end for the Baltimore Ravens in 2021.
This team started off 8-3 and was the No. 1 seed in the conference. After Jackson injured his ankle against the Browns, the Ravens didn’t win another game.
All the remaining games were decided by three points except against the Cincinnati Bengals game. The Ravens offense failed to execute when it mattered most and it cost them dearly.
The reality is, the Ravens have been in close games all season. However, the difference was at the beginning of the season their superstar quarterback was healthy enough to finish games for them.
Tyler Huntley is a very good player, however, he is not at the point yet where he can put a team on his back to make THE play to win games.
12 of the Ravens 17 games were of the one-score variety. TWELVE! Of those games BAL was:
— AdamBMore (@AdamBMore) January 10, 2022
•5-1 when Lamar started
•1-5 when Huntley started
I know there’s more to it than that, but thats a pretty glaring discrepancy.
There is nothing wrong with that. When superstar players are injured, there’s expected to be a drop-off in play. However, in an injury-riddled season, almost all of the Ravens’ stars and superstars were out therefore they constantly came up just short.
People will argue that late-game decisions such as the two-point conversions against the Steelers and the Packers cost the Ravens a playoff spot.
However, you argue the opposite. If the Ravens played conservatively all season as some in the media want, then there’s a strong chance that this team loses to the Chiefs, Colts, and Vikings.
They are an aggressive-minded organization. Therefore, sometimes the risks that they take will backfire on them. Those same risks paid off earlier in the season but didn’t late.