The Ravens helped end the Steelers season while putting a bow on their record-setting regular season
By Bryan DeArdo
• 1 min read
The Baltimore Ravens set two impressive records during Sunday's 28-10 win over the Steelers in the final Sunday of the regular season. With the win, the Ravens set a franchise record with 14 regular season wins. Baltimore also broke a 41-year old record for the most rushing yards by a team in a single season. In the process, the Ravens handed the Steelers, their AFC North rival, to a third consecutive loss, as Pittsburgh will miss the playoffs for a second straight season and for the fifth time in Mike Tomlin's 13-year tenure as head coach.
The Ravens had no issues moving the ball despite not having MVP front-runner Lamar Jackson under center. In his place, Robert Griffin III helped orchestrate five scoring drives while leading a Ravens offense that rushed for over 223 yards on 44 carries against Pittsburgh's stout defense.
Ahead 9-7 late in the second quarter, Justice Hill's eight-yard touchdown stretched the Ravens' lead to 16-7 at intermission. Baltimore's other four scoring drives ended on field goals by Justin Tucker. The Ravens' second touchdown was scored on special teams, with Baltimore recovering Steelers punter Jordan Berry's fumble in the end zone with 4:41 left. Brandon Carr's sack/safety of Duck Hodges 20 seconds later finished off Baltimore's first season sweep of Pittsburgh since the 2015 season.
While the Steelers finish the year at 8-8, the Ravens will sit out the wild card round while awaiting their divisional round opponent.
Here's a more in-depth look at how the Ravens pulled off the convincing win.
Why the Ravens won
Baltimore controlled the line of scrimmage, with Gus Edwards bullying Pittsburgh's defense to the tune of 130 yards on 30 carries. The Ravens also received an efficient day from Griffin, who rushed for 50 yards while keeping Pittsburgh's defense off-balance for most of the game. Defensively, the Ravens overwhelmed Hodges, holding him to 95 yards on 9 of 25 passing.
Why the Steelers lost
For a third straight game, Pittsburgh was unable to overcome bad play from the quarterback position. And despite Benny Snell's strong outing (rushing for 91 yards that included his second quarter touchdown that gave Pittsburgh a 7-6 lead), the Steelers still failed to rush for over 100 yards for the third time in as many games. JuJu Smith-Schuster was a complete non-factor, catching two of six targets for six yards while being blanketed by Marlon Humphrey, whose critical forced fumble of Smith-Schuster back in Week 6 gave Baltimore a Week 6 overtime win in Pittsburgh.
While Griffin is not your average backup, Pittsburgh's defense can't be spared after letting a diminished version of Baltimore's offense record five scoring drives while controlling the ball for nearly 40 minutes. The Steelers' defense also lost its composure on several occasions that included T.J. Watt's roughing the passer penalty near the end of the first half that helped set up Tucker's second field that gave the Ravens the lead for good.
Another overlooked play from Sunday's game took place in the second quarter. Defending a third-and-five play from Baltimore's 48, Devin Bush was unable to hang onto an interception -- and a likely pick-six -- with 10:01 in the second half that would have added to Pittsburgh's one-point lead.
Turning point
After the Steelers' offense punted on its first possession of the second half, Watt's forced fumble of Edwards -- that was scooped up by Pittsburgh cornerback Joe Haden -- gave the Steelers a golden opportunity to re-gain momentum. But the Ravens' defense created more momentum for the home team by holding the Steelers to a field goal, as Pittsburgh's offense wouldn't score again.
Play of the game
With the Steelers' offense starting to show some signs of life, Matthew Judon's sack and forced fumble of Hodges was recovered by Michael Pierce at Pittsburgh's 23-yard line set up Hill's touchdown run. Instead of cutting into Baltimore's lead, the Steelers trailed by nine points at intermission.
Quotable
"One of the (game balls) was given to me. And I'm gonna keep this one (held) tight. I'll be sleeping with this one under my pillow tonight. Very meaningful." — an emotional John Harbaugh, who was awarded a game ball by his team following the win.
Quotable II
"We didn't tackle well. They possessed the ball, we didn't," Tomlin on the success of the Ravens' rushing attack Sunday despite not having Jackson and Pro Bowl running back Mark Ingram in uniform
What's next
As stated above, the Ravens have received a bye -- the team's first bye since the 2011 season and second during the Harbaugh era -- and will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Steelers will conduct exit interviews and will hold Tomlin's season-ending press conference later this week. Pittsburgh will have to address several expiring contracts this offseason that includes the contract of former first round pick Bud Dupree, who recorded a career-high 10.5 sacks this season.
Re-live today's action by taking a look at our live coverage from Sunday's game.
