Ravens vs. Steelers: Full Game Grades for Baltimore
The Pittsburgh Steelers played host to the Baltimore Ravens in a wild-card playoff matchup of division rivals on Saturday. After the Steelers won the AFC North, Baltimore finished in third place in the division while also claiming one of the two wild-card spots.ย
These two teams split the regular-season series, with both teams winning at home. The Ravens won 26-6 in Baltimore in Week 2. As for the Steelers, they got revenge with a 43-23 win in Pittsburgh in Week 9.ย
Unlike those two games, this one was much closer throughout, though there wasn't nearly as much offense as there was in Week 9.
A big reason why was Steelers All-Pro running back Le'Veon Bell did not play in this one. That made it easier for the Ravens to stop the run, which forced the game onto the shoulder of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
He had a great game, and it began with an early drive that ultimately ended in a field goal to give Pittsburgh a 3-0 lead.
After the Ravens punted on their first possession, they responded with an eight-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to take their first lead.
The drive saw the Ravens begin to establish the ground game while also mixing in some play-action passes for nice chunks of yards.ย The drive culminated with backup running back Bernard Pierce scoring on an eight-yard run to give the Ravens a 7-3 lead.
From there, both teams traded field goals to end the first half. Baltimore got there after continuing its balanced attack, while the Steelers continued to move the ball primarily through the air.ย
The start of the third quarter saw the Ravens tack on another field goal after Joeย Flacco guided the offense through the air. That gave the Ravens a 13-9 lead, and the game began to turn in favor of Baltimore after the defense forced just the second Steelers punt.
Flacco then hit Steve Smith for a 43-yard strike in Steelers territory.ย The drive ended withย Flacco eluding pressure to keep a play alive and findingย Torrey Smith for an 11-yard touchdown to give the Ravens a 20-9 lead.ย
It was a clutch play by Flacco to avoid the pressure and hit Smith in the back of the end zone.ย The Ravens defense followed that up with another stop to force a Steelers punt. The fourth quarter began with Baltimore holding a 20-9 lead.ย
However, Justin Forsett fumbled at midfield to give Pittsburgh the ball. On the ensuing play, Roethlisberger hit Antonio Brown for a 45-yard bomb down to the 1-yard line.ย
Big Ben then hit Martavis Bryant for a six-yard score. After a failed two-point conversion, Baltimore held just a 20-15 lead with Pittsburgh having all the momentum.ย
The Ravens got that momentum back after Flacco hit Owen Daniels for a 13-yard gain into field-goal range. It was a drive the Ravens began at their own 37-yard line after a 22-yard return by Jacoby Jones and a 15-yard penalty for a hit out of bounds.
After the drive stalled, Justin Tucker hit a huge 52-yard field goal to give the Ravens a 23-15 lead with 8:47 left in the game.ย
The defense then made the play of the game, as linebacker Terrell Suggs intercepted an errant Roethlisberger pass. On the ensuing play, Flacco hit reserve tight end Crockett Gillmore for a 21-yard touchdown to put Baltimore up 30-15 with 7:56 left.
The next Steelers drive ended with the same result after safety Darian Stewart intercepted Big Ben in the end zone. The Ravens then were forced to punt, and Sam Koch had his punt blocked following a bad snap by Patrick Scales for the safety.
That cut the lead to 30-17 with 1:56 left, but the ensuing Steelers possession ended after tight end Heath Miller fumbled and Stewart recovered the ball.ย
That allowed the Ravens to run out the clock for the win, and Baltimore escaped Pittsburgh with a 30-17 victory. This was as complete a team win as the Ravens had at any point in the regular season, and it came at the perfect time.ย
Here are my grades for each Ravens unit.ย
Quarterback
1 of 10
Coming off arguably the best season of his seven-year career, Joe Flacco was money for the Ravens, and his play was a big reason why Baltimore escaped Pittsburgh with a win.ย
He completed 18 of 29 passes for 259 yards and two scores, as he picked apart the Steelers for much of the night.ย
What made his performance greater was how well he moved around the pocket to avoid pressure. He avoided several sacks and even ran for 10 yards and a first down.ย
Flacco's signature play came in the third quarter with Baltimore holding a 13-9 lead. A long drive ended with him eluding pressure to keep a play alive and finding Torrey Smith for an 11-yard touchdown to give the Ravens a 20-9 lead.
This was Flacco at his best, and that was enough to get the Ravens a win.
Grade: A
Running Back
2 of 10
The running game was grounded for much of the game. The Steelers made it a point to keep Baltimore from beating them on the ground, and they were stacking the box for much of the contest.ย
Pittsburgh wanted Flacco to beat them, and as mentioned in the previous slide, he did just that. The Stellers didn't want Justin Forsett, the fifth-leading rusher this year, to have a big game.
Forsett never got going, as he finished with just 36 yards on 16 carries. He also fumbled the ball in the fourth quarter, which led to a Steelers touchdown. Backup Bernard Pierce ran for a five-yard score on his only carry of the game.
In the end, the backs didn't do much, but that was mostly because Pittsburgh sold out to stop them. Still, that fumble almost allowed the Steelers to come back, and you can't make that mistake.ย
Grade: C
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
The Ravens receivers were mostly quiet throughout the contest, but they made enough big plays to Baltimore in scoring position several times.ย
Steve Smith finished with five catches for 101 yards, with his biggest being a 43-yard catch in the third quarter.ย
That led to Torrey Smith catching a 20-yard touchdown to cap off the drive. He finished with two catches for 28 yards.ย
At tight end, Owen Daniels had a big game with four catches for 70 yards and several key first downs. Rookie Crockett Gillmore caught just one pass, but it was a 21-yard score in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
Grade: B+
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The Ravens offensive line was solid in pass protection against a Steelers defense that thrives off pressuring quarterbacks.ย
The line surrendered just one sack and four QB hits as it kept Flacco clean for much of the night. The O-line wasn't as successful in the ground game, though.
The Steelers often stacked the box and made it challenging for the line to get the blocks needed to open holes for the running backs.
Baltimore rushed for just 49 yards on 25 carries. Even with Pittsburgh loading the box, the line should have blocked better to open the running game up more.
Grade: B-
Defensive Line
5 of 10
The Ravens saw the return of All-Pro defensive lineman Haloti Ngata in this game after he served a four-game suspension over the final four games of the regular season.ย
With his return, the defensive line dominated the Steelers offensive line at several points in this game. Ngata even came up with a first-half sack to halt a drive that had gone into Ravens territory.ย
Nose tackle Brandon Williams even came up with a critical sack to help force the Steelers into a first-half field goal.ย The rest of the linemen did a great job of holding their gaps and limiting the Steelers ground game.ย
Pittsburgh rushed for just 68 yards on 19 attempts, and the defensiveย line played a big role in that.ย
Grade: A-
Linebacker
6 of 10
The Ravens linebackers needed to come up big in this game for the Ravens to have any hope of escaping Pittsburgh with a win.
Against a Steelers offense that was relying more on the pass, the linebackers got good pressure on Ben Roethlisberger to help contain him for much of the game.
Though the secondary often had breakdowns that led to big plays, the backers were doing their part to pressure Big Ben and stop the run when Pittsburgh went to the ground.ย
Elvis Dumervil was nearly unblockable in this one, as he notched two sacks, two QB hits and two tackles for loss.ย
Terrell Suggs and Courtney Upshaw also combined for two sacks and two tackles for loss. Inside linebackers Daryl Smith and C.J. Mosley combined for 19 tackles, as they helped shut down the Steelers ground game.ย
This unit was outstanding, and as was the case many times this season, it was the best Ravens unit.ย
Grade: A+
Secondary
7 of 10
The Ravens defense received great production from its defensive line and linebackers to slow down the red-hot Steelers offense.
However, those efforts were often not enough to overcome a depleted secondary that was repeatedly gashed for big plays.ย
Early on, starting cornerback Rashaan Melvin was lost to a head injury, and Antoine Cason had to come off the bench to get significant playing time.ย
This led to Baltimore playing a bend-but-don't-break style of defense that often featured the cornerbacks playing off their receiver and leaving a lot of cushion between them.
Roethlisberger picked part the secondary all night, and even when Ravens defensive backs had a shot to make a play, they often failed.ย
There were several missed tackles by defensive backs that allowed Steelers receivers to pick up extra yardage. However, they played a solid game overall to help limit the Steelers to just 17 points.ย
Safety Darian Stewart was the MVP of this unit, as he grabbed an interception and recovered a fumble in the fourth quarter to prevent a Steelers rally.ย
Grade: B-
Special Teams
8 of 10
The Ravens special teams have been reliable all year, and they were mostly the same in this game. Kicker Justin Tucker hit several clutch kicks in unfavorable conditions with rain affecting the field.ย
That made it more difficult to kick on Heinz Field, but you'd have never guessed that while watching Tucker. He hit a 28-yarder, a 45-yarder and a 52-yarder in addition to three extra points.
Punter Sam Koch had just two punts the entire night, and the last one was blocked for a safety in the fourth quarter. However, it was because a high snap by the long snapper caused Koch to delay the punt.ย
That allowed the Steelers to block it for two points, which trimmed Baltimore's lead to 30-17. Koch's other punt was a 49-yarder.
On kickoff coverage, the Ravens limited the Steelers to five returns for an average of 19.5 yards. While the special teams weren't as great as they've been much of this year, they still played well overall in helping Baltimore get the win.
Grade: B+
Coaching
9 of 10
The Ravens looked like a team on a mission for much of this game, and they played one of the best games they've had this season.ย
Penalties had been a huge issue the entire season, but they committed just two penalties for 14 yards in this game.ย
On offense, Gary Kubiak called a great game that involved a balanced attack focused on the ground game and play-action passing.ย
That kept the Steelers defense on its heels for much of the night while also keeping Flacco clean in the pocket as he picked apart the defense.ย
On defense, Dean Pees kept his depleted secondary from getting exposed too often. He had hisย cornerbacks often play off their receiver and leave a lot of cushion between them.
While that allowed the Steelers to complete some easy passes, it limited the big plays that they had in the Week 9 matchup.ย
In the end, this was a masterful coaching job on all fronts, and it helped propel the Ravens to a 30-17 win in their division rival's house.ย
Grade: A
Cumulative Grade
10 of 10
Positional Unit | Overall Grade |
QB | ย A |
RB | ย C |
WR/TE | ย B+ |
OL | ย B- |
DL | ย A- |
LB | ย A+ |
Secondary | ย B- |
ST | ย B+ |
Coaching | ย A |
Cumulative Grade | ย A- |
After a roller-coaster regular season, the Baltimore Ravens are moving on in the playoffs after beating the Steelers in Pittsburgh.ย
Regardless of what happens going forward, it's easy to admire the fight, teamwork and resiliency this team showed throughout the year.
From the Ray Rice sagaย toย the many offseason arrestsย andย from the decimated secondaryย to the depleted offensive line, the Ravens held together and overcame it all to win 10 games and earn a playoff berth.
It's rare for a team to undergo so much in one year, and it's even rarer for a team to overcome it and get to the postseason.
Baltimore did just that, and now it's in the divisional round of the playoffs after a win at Pittsburghโsomething that's been difficult for anyone to do in the postseason.
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