Pittsburgh Steelers: Steeler Nation Hopes To Stay Undefeated Vs Baltimore Ravens
A fierce matchup is expected when the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens meet this Sunday.
As one of the best rivalries in the NFL, the Steelers and Ravens are virtually always playing with the division title or a playoff spot on the line and this year will be no different.
Pittsburgh comes into the game at 3-0 without star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger while the Ravens are sitting at 2-1 looking to even up the AFC North race.
The game will feature two of the most physical, dominating defenses in the league in what figures to be a low scoring, close game.
The Steelers will have to defend against a potent Ravens offense featuring running back Ray Rice and wide receiver Anquan Boldin.
Rice is the last player to rush for 100 yards against Pittsburgh’s defense, but may be slowed down by a leg injury.
Lead by Aaron Smith, the Steelers defense will be up to the task, currently allowing only 59.7 rush yards per game.
Pittsburgh will also look to use their home field as an advantage, where they have won 10 of 14 games all-time against Baltimore as they try to bring their record to 4-0 heading into the bye week.
Offense – Keep Batch Upright
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Last week against Tampa Bay, Charlie Batch ignited the Steelers offense throwing three touchdown passes, including two over 40 yards to Mike Wallace.
The opened up Pittsburgh offense allowed the running game to get in full gear as they rushed for over 200 yards as a team, including 143 yards by Rashard Mendenhall.
Pittsburgh will hope for similar results on Sunday, but will face a much more formidable defense against Baltimore.
The Steelers offensive line will go up against a physical Baltimore defense front, featuring Haloti Ngata.
Ngata will be rookie Maurkice Pouncey’s biggest challenge, both figuratively and literally, so far in his young career.
On the outside, the ever dangerous Terrell Suggs is always a threat and has had success in the past against the Steelers.
While Batch has a strong pocket presence, he is not mobile and cannot afford to be hit often given his injury history. The Steelers are one play away from a recovering Byron Leftwich or two hits away from Antwaan Randle El at quarterback.
However, if given time, Batch should be able to make the plays to allow the Steelers to be balanced on offense for the second straight week.
Offense – Pound the Rock
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“I would love for our opponents to think we can’t stop the run. Opponents listing, Ravens can’t stop the run. Just run it at us and we’ll see how it turns out.”
Those words spoken by John Harbaugh on his radio show are bulletin board material for the Steelers. But they are also something that Harbaugh may want to reconsider.
Through three weeks, the Ravens have allowed 127 rushing yards per game and 4.7 yards per carry.
Mendenhall, the NFL’s fourth leading rusher with 332 yards, averaged over seven yards per carry against Tampa Bay and will look to carry that momentum against the Ravens.
Traditionally, the Ravens have success against Pittsburgh’s running game and they will certainly try to key in on it this week, thus forcing the Steelers to go to the air.
Pittsburgh’s coaching staff cannot fall into this trap and will have to establish the run.
In addition to running Mendenhall, the Steelers would be well served to put Isaac Redman on the field.
Redman has excelled as a lead blocker and can use his big body to run over defenders from the fullback position.
A strong running attack will also ease the burden on Batch and will serve as another method of protection, by keeping the ball out of his hands meaning he will not have to face a ferocious pass rush.
Pittsburgh will also control the clock meaning that their defense can conserve their energy so when they are on the field they can attack more.
Offense – Protect the Ball
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There is a good chance whoever wins the turnover battle will win this game.
Considering many of the games in this series are close, such as last December’s 23-20 Steelers win in Pittsburgh, a turnover could be the game changing play that decides the outcome.
Though they have not forced many turnovers this season, the Ravens defense is very opportunistic and will take advantage of every turnover they get.
One play can change the entire momentum of the game and even with the offensive outburst last week, Pittsburgh is still not equipped to come back right now.
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Defense – Fluster Flacco
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Joe Flacco is ranked 27th in the league in completion percentage connecting on only 54.6 percent of his passes and is tied for second with five interceptions.
Though he is in his third year, Flacco has not progressed as anticipated and does not appear ready to carry a pass heavy Ravens offense.
When under pressure, his mechanics are not where they need to be, particularly his feet and this has resulted in his poor accuracy.
What Flacco is excellent is dumping the ball off to his running backs. Pittsburgh cannot let the short passes burn them and Troy Polamalu and Lawrence Timmons will be key defenders here.
Their jobs can become a lot easier if James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley can apply consistent pressure forcing Flacco into mistakes.
Defense – Key in on Rice
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Ray Rice is the last running back to rush for 100 yards against the Steelers defense and while he is injured heading into Sunday’s game, there is no doubt that he will be a factor.
Pittsburgh will have to defend him both on the ground and in the air as Rice is a dual threat back.
Timmons should be able to shadow Rice if necessary. Both he and Harrison put Chris Johnson into submission two weeks ago with their physical play.
If the hard hitting continues, Baltimore may have to shift to Willis McGahee and Le’Ron McClain.
The presence of Aaron Smith along the defensive line also makes a huge difference.
By taking Rice out of the game, that puts the game in the hands of Flacco and given his history against the Steelers, that is exactly what they want.
Defense – Shadow Boldin
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For years, Derrick Mason was the go to receiver in Baltimore. That is not the case anymore.
By acquiring Anquan Boldin from the Arizona Cardinals this offseason, the Ravens found themselves a new top receiving target.
The move has paid off so far as Boldin is ranked eighth in the league with 20 receptions and has three touchdowns, all three coming last week against the Cleveland Browns.
Boldin gives Baltimore a big, physical receiver who is a threat to score in the redzone and is easily their most dangerous receiver, particularly since they have no true deep threats.
The key in defending Boldin is to not necessarily prevent him from getting the ball, but instead for the defenders to not allow Boldin to get behind them.
So far, Pittsburgh’s pass defense has successfully executed a bend but don’t break approach, giving their opponents yards through the air, but shutting them down as they approached Pittsburgh’s territory.
Both Ike Taylor and Bryant McFadden have done a great job this season shutting down their opposition.
If the Steelers can keep Boldin covered, they will have a much easier time containing Baltimore’s offense.
Spotlight Player – Offense
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Maurkice Pouncey will face his toughest challenge against Haloti Ngata this week.
The entire Ravens defensive line has, in the past, dominated the Steelers offensive line, but none of those lines featured Pouncey in the center.
So far this season, Pouncey has made the players around him better and he will need to do the same this week.
If he can man the middle, Pittsburgh should be able to establish a ground game which should help open up the pass.
It will also be important to keep any potential pass rushers out of the middle, allowing Batch time to get rid of the ball.
If he succeeds this week, Pouncey will elevate his status with the Steelers and around the league. It will also mean that the Steelers have an excellent chance of winning.
Spotlight Player – Defense
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Aaron Smith will be an instrumental part of shutting down the Ravens rush offense.
So far this season, Pittsburgh’s defense has been dominant against the run and that will need to continue Sunday.
By shutting down the run, they will force Flacco to have to beat them with his arm.
For his career, Flacco is 0-3 in Pittsburgh and has thrown four interceptions while completing only 48.8 percent of his passes. The Steelers have also sacked him 12 times in Pittsburgh.
Smith will need to continue occupy blockers and collapse the pocket, allowing Pittsburgh’s athletic linebackers come in to make the plays.
Game Notes
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- Pittsburgh is 17-11 all-time against Baltimore.
- The Steelers and Ravens split their games last season.
- Pittsburgh has not started 4-0 since 1979.
- With one more touchdown, Hines Ward will have sole possession of second place on the team’s all-time touchdowns scored list ahead of Jerome Bettis. Ward currently has 80 touchdowns.
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