The Baltimore Ravens suffered a back-breaking defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 14. The 27-22 loss throws a huge wrench in their 2025 playoff hopes, and while there is still a realistic road to the playoffs, the mountain they have to trek becomes much tougher.
Everything looked out of sorts for the Ravens on Sunday. The defense looked lost for the first time in months, the offense was once again inconsistent, and even the special teams unit was failing to hold up its end of the bargain.
Linebacker Roquan Smith, who has been the leader of the team since arriving in Charm City via a trade in 2022, knows everything is still in front of them. However, he is also aware that they will need to hit a second gear in the coming weeks to earn that playoff berth they desire.
In his postgame press conference, Smith outlined how the team can do better by becoming a more complete team in the final stretch.
“Talent’s there, but it’s not about talent,” Smith said. “If 10 is doing their job, and one’s not, it’s not good enough. It’s about honing in on the details, each and every individual, including myself, play in and play out. Yeah, it’s the NFL, people are gonna make plays, but it’s about responding…I think it’s just that plain and simple.”
Roquan Smith delivers clear message in postgame press conference
Since the offseason, it has been talked about the abundance of talent Baltimore has on their roster. However, it is clearly not translating onto the field. Whether it is on offense, defense, or special teams, it feels like the Ravens have very rarely put together complete wins in all three phases.
On offense, they have been struggling mostly due to the offensive line, but the wide receivers and tight ends have also failed to create separation consistently. On Sunday, the Steelers generated pressure due to tight coverage on several occasions. Sure, the line was abysmal again, but even when they did their job, something else went wrong. Blame can even be pinned on quarterback Lamar Jackson for being hesitant at times.
On defense, the pass rush and coverage often fail to work together to become a well-oiled machine. It has been well-documented that Baltimore’s pass rush is among the worst in the league, but when Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr tries to combat that by bringing heavy pressure, the secondary falters. That was seen in Week 14, where Pittsburgh quarterback Aaron Rodgers uncorked a couple of deep passes to wide receivers DK Metcalf and Calvin Austin III.
Even the special teams were out of sync on Sunday. Rookie kicker Tyler Loop missed a critical extra point that put Baltimore in an even deeper hole, and he began the second half with a kick out of bounds. Then later, safety Keondre Jackson had a comeback-deflating holding call on a Steelers’ punt that pushed the Ravens’ offense back to their own 26-yard line, rather than starting their final drive on their own 44-yard line.
They also simply need to play better from behind. As Smith said, it is about responding, and they have not done too well when they go down on the scoreboard. They looked clueless on the two-minute drill in the fourth quarter, and it took just a few plays on that final drive to see they had no shot at coming back.
The message is clear: not only does Baltimore have to play together in all three phases, but each individual group on offense, defense, and special teams has to do its job. They failed to do that in the must-win AFC North showdown, and with cracks revealing themselves once again, Smith and company need to repatch the ship if they want to make the playoffs.