Last Thanksgiving, Mike Tomlin roamed onto the playing field and derailed Baltimore Ravens kickoff return Jacoby Jones from a potential touchdown. Whether that was inadvertent or on purpose remains up for debate, and the Ravens went on to win regardless, but they certainly have not forgotten about the bizarre and controversial incident.
Terrell Suggs, the vocal linebacker and leader of the Ravens defense, has already reminded the media of what happened the last time these two AFC North rivals squared off. It was another chapter in the intense and physical rivalry that Suggs describes as a mutual “hatred.” When Pittsburgh (1-0, 1-0 AFC North) visits Baltimore (0-1, 0-1 AFC North) on Thursday evening, the outcome will determine the direction for both teams as they complete the second week of the 2014 regular season.
A Steelers victory would put Baltimore at 0-2, with both losses coming to division rivals on their home field. A Ravens victory ties them with Pittsburgh in the standings and helps to ease the hurt that this week has caused in John Harbaugh’s locker room. No team has been more discussed and more maligned in the past few days than the Ravens, who cut ties with star running back Ray Rice after video footage was released of him assaulting a woman to whom he is now married.
Without Rice, with a broken and divided locker room, and coming off a tough opening loss to Cincinnati, Baltimore cannot afford another bad week. All of this makes this week’s battle with Baltimore that much more important for the Steelers, who can roll out to a 2-0 start after having defeated Cleveland on Sunday. After an 0-4 start last season, Tomlin and the Steelers have the opportunity to get off to a perfect start by defeating the other top contenders for the division.
In the last two seasons, the two teams have split their season series. Two years ago, it was the away team winning each time. Last year, it the home team winning each time. The rivalry is unpredictable and among the most vicious and vital in today’s NFL. On paper, the defenses are statistically similar after the short sample size of just one game played this season. Pittsburgh allowed nine more total yards to Cleveland than Baltimore did to Cincinnati, but they did so in a very different manner. The Steelers were vulnerable on the ground, allowing 183 yards. Baltimore was more vulnerable through the air, allowing 301 passing yards to Andy Dalton and the Bengals, mostly on big plays downfield.
On offense, the Steelers rank second overall in passing yards with 363 against Cleveland. Flacco and the Ravens threw for 329, good for seventh in the league. The difference? It took Pittsburgh just 35 attempts to gain that much, while it took Baltimore 62 attempts. The Ravens offense was unable to move the ball early against the Bengals and did not score until the third quarter after being shutout at halftime. That kind of slow start and inconsistency would certainly be troublesome again if they replicate the performance vs. Pittsburgh, but as the Browns proved in Pittsburgh on Sunday, proper adjustments and a balanced attack can beat Dick LeBeau‘s defense.
Baltimore lacks a strong running game without Rice, so achieving balance offensively may be a struggle again this week with Pittsburgh in town. Justin Forsett had 11 carries for a respectable 70 yards and may be given the best chance to carry the Ravens ground attack. Bernard Pierce was expected to be the starter, but he never got going last week (six carries, 14 yards) and may lose time to Forsett who was solid. Quarterback Joe Flacco will look for veteran newcomer Steve Smith, the younger Torrey Smith, and tight end Dennis Pitta, among others. The Steelers offense, led as always by Ben Roethlisberger, will turn again to Le’Veon Bell for success in the running game. Antonio Brown, Markus Wheaton, Justin Brown and Heath Miller led the receiving corps that wreaked havoc on the Cleveland secondary.
Additions to the injury report prior to this game include WR Lance Moore and RB Dri Archer, who will have to be replaced in the return game as he recovers from an ankle injury. Moore, who came over from New Orleans in the offseason, will likely have his Steelers debut delayed again. For Baltimore, defensive back Lardarius Webb missed the Bengals game, but has been a full participant in practice this week.
When: Thursday, September 11, 2014 – 8:25 PM EST
Where: M&T Bank Stadium – Baltimore, MD
Watch: CBS and NFL Network
Spread: Baltimore -3 (via Bovada)
Last Meeting: Baltimore defeated Pittsburgh, 22-20 on November 28, 2013
Keys for Pittsburgh:
1) Play a full sixty minutes this time. After obliterating Cleveland for one half on Sunday, the Steelers blew a 27-3 lead and it took a last second field goal to escape with a 30-27 victory. That kind of performance will not result in a win against a more talented and more experienced Ravens squad.
2) Target WR Antonio Brown…again and again and again. Brown had five receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown in the first half vs. Cleveland, and he was also productive on special teams. He is developing into a star and should be included as much as possible in Todd Haley’s offense until someone proves they can stop him.
3) Pressure Flacco from the get-go. In what should be a pass-heavy offense, pressuring Joe Flacco and making him uncomfortable in the pocket can make it another messy night for Baltimore. Also, wrapping up the ball carrier is a must, as Cleveland benefited from numerous missed tackles in their comeback effort last week.
Keys for Baltimore:
1) Forget about your ex-running back. The memories of Rice are already being erased as the team has removed his images from the stadium and offered to replace jerseys at the team store. If the coaching staff and players execute a Rice-less gameplan and rally around each other, they will be better off with each passing week.
2) Avoid relying so much on Flacco. He threw 62 passes, completing just 35 of them for about 5.5 yards per attempt. Take out the 80-yard TD pass to Steve Smith and it was just 4.3 yards per attempt. Forsett had modest success with 6.4 yards per carry, yet only ran 11 times and the team only attempted 17 designed running plays. A more balanced attack should be most effective against a Steelers defense that struggled to stop a balanced Browns offense in the second half last week.
3) The return of Lardarius Webb makes the Baltimore secondary quite a bit better. The type of huge play, like A.J. Green‘s game-winning 77-yard catch-and-run for Cincinnati, may not be an option with Webb on the field.
Prediction: Expect an emotional and wild game, one that will benefit Pittsburgh in a week that has already been emotional enough for the Ravens. Baltimore will fall behind early and cave in, falling to 0-2 as Pittsburgh wins 24-13, staking claim to an early lead in the AFC North.
