Baltimore stars get a break before hosting playoffs.
Sunday, December 29, 2019, M&T BANK STADIUM, BALTIMORE. Never has the phrase “player safety” meant so much as it did Sunday. But make no mistake: the very sight of their AFC North Division archrivals inspired the 70,695 fans on hand–as well as the players and coaches themselves–to get a club-record 14th regular-season win, as well as an 11th straight win.
So, despite the absences of stars such as quarterback Lamar Jackson, running back Mark Ingram (calf strain), right guard Marshal Yanda and others, the Ravens secured a rain-soaked 28-10 win over an offensively-feeble Steelers outfit–a team that held the #6 and final AFC playoff seed just a week ago.
But Pittsburgh (8-8), beset by injuries and down-the-stretch ineffectiveness, didn’t score a fourth-quarter touchdown for an 11th straight game, committed turnovers for a 23rd straight game, and missed the playoffs in consecutive years for the first time since 2012-13. The Steelers’ fate was decided because of the Titans’ lopsided win over Houston, which sealed (for the Titans) the sixth AFC playoff seed.
By winning in Baltimore, the Ravens registered their fourth sweep of Pittsburgh and their first since 2015.
For the first time since the NFL mandated intradivisional play in 2010, the Ravens and Steelers closed the season against each other. Conventional wisdom at season’s start was that THIS game could be for all the marbles. It wasn’t. But because Pittsburgh was in playoff contention, the game’s start time was flexed from 1p. to the late afternoon.
Besides Jackson, Ingram, and Yanda, safety Earl Thomas, defensive tackle Brandon Williams, tackle Ronnie Stanley, and tight end Mark Andrews did not play. Yet the Ravens, treating this contest like a preseason game, still managed the win.
For Baltimore, this postseason now takes on the same look as it had in 2006 and 2011–when it was the #2 seed. In the former instance, the Ravens returned from the bye only to lose to Indianapolis. Five years later, Baltimore knocked off Houston in the Divisional round, only to lose at New England in the AFC Championship Game.
This time around–and if the top-seeded Ravens win their Divisional home game on either January 11 or 12 (CBS) against the #4, 5 or 6 seed–they would host the AFC title game for the first time in franchise history, and for only the second time in Baltimore’s NFL tenure.
The AFC Championship Game will take place on Sunday, January 19, at 3 p. (CBS) at the home of the higher surviving seed. Two weeks late–on Sunday, February 2–Super Bowl 54 will take place at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, at 5p (Fox).
Playing in that game would be a fitting end to what has been the most consistent regular season in Ravens’ history. The team set records for total offense, touchdowns, rushing yards, and points. Baltimore also became the first team in history to average both 200 yards per game rushing and receiving for a full season.
Against Pittsburgh, some fans feared that the Ravens’ razor-sharp brand of play would be lost if the starters didn’t play. But the Ravens proved they are young, fast, and deep.
Quarterback Robert Griffin III got his first start as a Raven and made his first start at a QB in three years. Griffin III didn’t have the sharpness of Jackson, but still directed the team’s run-first offense adroitly.
Gus Edwards helped a ton, too. Running behind a line that had James Hurst and Parker Ehringer in for Stanley and Yanda, Edwards began his 130-yard day by pacing two early scoring drives that ended in Justin Tucker’s field goals.
After failing to score on its opening drive, the Steelers loaded up with bigger blockers and put together a ten-play, 75-yard drive that ended in a Benny Snell touchdown that gave the visitors a 7-6 lead. With Tennessee and Houston locked in a close game at that point, it looked as though Pittsburgh could be headed back to the playoffs. But it was not to be.
Tucker kicked a 42-yard field goal to put the Ravens back in front and, then, Matt Judon forced a fumble that Michael Pierce recovered (the Ravens’ 13th straight game with a takeaway). From there, rookie running back Justice Hill scored from eight yards out for a 16-7 halftime lead.
The teams exchanged field goals after halftime, so the Ravens held a nine-point lead before the final decisive sequence occurred. Steelers’ punter Jordan Berry couldn’t handle a punt snap in wet conditions, and Ravens’ special teamer Jordan Richards fell on the ball in the end zone for a touchdown. Moments later, quarterback Devlin Hodges was called for intentional grounding in the end zone for the Ravens’ first safety of the year and the game’s final points.
For Pittsburgh the outcome was dramatic. The team failed to reach 20 points for a 20th straight game, and the Steelers’ 11-game Week 17 win streak came to an end.
On this day, the watchword was ‘safety first.’ With players resting and spared from the specter of injury, the next and most significant step in the journey is ahead–chasing a third Vince Lombardi Trophy.
