The Pittsburgh Steelers rallied and beat the Baltimore Ravens, 23-20. This was going to be a very competitive game. Everyone knew it, because the Ravens and Steelers have the best defenses in football.
Also, Baltimore and Pittsburgh have very dangerous rushing offenses. The Ravens have three very dangerous weapons in Willis McGahee, Le'Ron McClain, and Ray Rice. The Steelers have Willie Parker, Mewelde Moore, and Rashard Mendenhall.
The Ravens and Steelers both have some incredibly dominant defensive players. The Ravens have Ray Lewis, Bart Scott, Terrell Suggs, Ed Reed and Chris McAlister, while Pittsburgh has James Harrison, James Farrior, Troy Polamalu, and Casey Hampton.
But on to the game.
Earlier this week, the Ravens got an easier win to get. Both Willie Parker and Casey Hampton wouldn't play. Parker has been one of the most consistent backs in the game in the last few seasons. Last year, he had 1,316 yards. He had 1,000 yards the last three seasons.
He started the season well this year. In the first two games, he ran for 243 yards and three touchdowns. However, in Week Three, he rushed for just 20 yards and left with an injury.
Hampton has been the best defensive tackle in the game recently. This year, he has played just two games and made three tackles. So, the Ravens had a much better shot at winning.
However, in the beginning of the game, it looked like the Steelers were not at all affected by injuries. On the first drive, the Ravens were pushed back two yards while the Steelers drove to the Baltimore 31-yard line and settled for a 48-yard Jeff Reed field goal.
This was also a big game for Ravens rookie quarterback Joe Flacco. It was just his third career start, and he was looking for the first rookie QB to start 3-0 since some quarterback, he was pretty good, Elway or something like that!
He did not look like Elway at all.
Through the first two drives, he drove the Ravens a total of zero yards. But, the Ravens' defense came up big, as always. On the first play of the ensuing Steelers drive, Haloti Ngata picked off Ben Roethlisberger, and the Ravens had the ball at midfield.
Flacco looked like a poised veteran from then on. He drove Baltimore to the Steelers' 15-yard line, and Matt Stover made a 32-yard field goal. After a first six minutes of stalling offensive football, Joe Flacco and the Ravens took charge.
The Ravens started on the Steelers' 49-yard line, Flacco made some pinpoint passes and drove to the Steelers' eight-yard line, and Matt Stover made another field goal, this one from 25 yards away.The Ravens, with the clear momentum shift, stopped the Steelers again.
After a pass that went for 13 yards and drove the Ravens to the Steelers 31, Flacco looked confident. The Ravens were bold enough to air it out. And for that, they were wise. They drove to the Steelers' four-yard line before a touchdown pass to Dan Wilcox.
So, going into the half, it was 13-3, Ravens. Also, Flacco was going into the locker room after his first career touchdown pass. Being the Steelers, they would not go down without a fight.
The Ravens forced a punt right out of the gate. The Ravens and Steelers failed to score until there was 5:49 left in the quarter. After an eight-yard gain, Jarret Johnson lost the game, basically.
0 commentsLeave a Comment
Leave a Comment
You must register to post a comment.