NFL Playoffs: Pittsburgh Steelers Spot Baltimore Ravens Lead, Come Back and Win

In a game that everyone thought would be low-scoring, the Steelers and Ravens put up 55 points mostly due to turnovers. 

Thanks to a forced fumble of Ben Roethlisberger by Terrell Suggs (that only the officials and Cory Redding knew was a fumble) and another forced fumble of Rashard Mendenhall by fellow Steeler (and overly eager) Chris Kemoeatu, the Steelers spotted the Ravens a 14-point lead in the first half.  The Ravens scored two touchdowns in 27 seconds off of two Steelers turnovers and appeared to be in control of the game.

But in the second half, the Ravens lost control and returned the favor by turning the ball over on three of their first four possessions.

I'm not sure if it was due to the fact that the Ravens got comfortable or because the Steelers defense stepped up their play and intensity or because the Steelers offense held on to the ball and took it to the Ravens defense, but the Steelers totally dominated the second half.

The steel curtain came down in the second half, holding the Ravens to a total of 28 yards in the final 30-minutes of the game (they only allowed a total of 126 yards for the game).  They pressured Joe Flacco relentlessly, forced two fumbles, intercepted a pass and held the Ravens to just 3 second half points.

While on the offensive side of the ball, Ben Roethlisberger took control of the play calling and the game, passing for almost 150 yards in the half.  Roethlisberger’s aggressiveness, mainly due to the fact that they could not run the ball, led the Steelers to 24 second half points and another comeback victory against the hated Ravens.

The key play of the half and game was when Roethlisberger convinced offensive coordinator Bruce Arians into going deep on a 3rd-and-19 play which resulted in a 58-yard completion to sixth round rookie Antonio Brown, who made a David Tyree type catch, holding the ball against his head as he ran out of bounds at the Ravens 4-yard line.

Five plays later, Rashard Mendenhall put the Steelers ahead to stay with a two-yard touchdown run.

The defense held on, thanks in part to another dropped pass by T.J. Houshmandzadeh on fourth down that would have given the Ravens a first down.

After the game, Hines Ward put it best saying, "What better way to put the Ravens out of the tournament? They keep asking for us and we keep putting them out of the tournament. They're going to be ticked about this for a long time."

The Steelers now look forward to hosting the New York Jets at Heinz Field in the AFC Championship Game this Sunday as they continue their quest for their seventh Super Bowl Title.