PITTSBURGH – The Kansas City Chiefs And Buffalo Bills met on Sunday, but the AFC's best team may have played in Pittsburgh earlier in the day.
OK, it's premature to call that Pittsburgh Steelers the top team in the AFC. But the 18:16 win on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens strengthened Pittsburgh's status as one of the best teams and a legitimate one Candidate. While the rest The world may just be realizing it, but the Steelers have long felt like they belong in the league's upper echelon.
“It’s something we talk about,” cornerback and Steelers incumbent Defensive Rookie of the Month Bishop Jr. Hat. said during a one-on-one interview with CBS Sports. “This organization has six Super Bowls. You know what's important. I'm just trying to bring the Lombardi back to Pittsburgh. Everyone is here for a reason. … We’re pushing to win the AFC North and win one.” this year.”
As for winning in the North, the Steelers (8-2) increased their chances of winning on Sunday, their first game of the year against a division opponent. The Steelers' defense was dominant against the Ravens, holding the league's reigning MVP Lamar Jackson to 16 of 33 over and Derrick Henry up to 65 yards on the ground. Additionally, the Steelers defense forced three turnovers (which led to half of their points total). Stop Baltimore's 2-point conversion attempt that would have evened the score with just over a minute to go.
Fittingly, Sunday's most impressive play came from a Steelers defender who was still a rookie linebacker at the time Payton Wilson Midway through the fourth quarter, he caught Jackson with a deep pass that set up the final quarter Chris Boswells six field goals.
The Steelers defense began and ended the half with forced turnovers that led to Boswell field goals. The latter of these turnovers was the former Raven Patrick Queens forced and recovered fumble deep in Baltimore territory. The loss of the ball and Boswell's subsequent field goal gave the Steelers a 9-7 halftime lead after the Ravens had just taken their first lead moments before.
Baltimore (7-4) wasn't at its best on Sunday. Similar to the Week 8 loss in Cleveland, the Ravens beat themselves up with inexcusable penalties, dropped passes and breakdowns in the secondary. Jackson also struggled with his accuracy all day. But the Steelers defense also had a lot to do with the Ravens' lack of offensive success.
Jackson was fired twice, but he was constantly persecuted TJ Watts (who had the first of Pittsburgh's two sacks) and the rest of Pittsburgh's pass rushers. When he actually passed the ball, several of his passes were blocked by Jackson's timeless defensive tackles Cameron Heywardwho has returned to his Pro Bowl form this year after injuries hampered him throughout last season.
“For the back end, just give your guy away,” Bishop said when asked about the Steelers’ success against Jackson. “It's like playing streetball. The guys are moving around trying to get open, although they obviously don't have too many ways to go because he's scrambling. For the rush boys, keep it in front of you and inside you will do it. “I need help and there are other people coming.
Henry broke loose for a 31-yard sprint that set up his short touchdown run late in the first half. But take the run away from that, King Henry was held to 34 yards on 12 carries.
“It's a solid gap,” Bishop said in assessing Pittsburgh's success against the USA leading rusher. “Guys in their gap winning their one-on-one duels. Getting out of their blocks and things like that, and most importantly, not being afraid to attack him. A lot of his big runs on tape are guys afraid to tackle him. … We’re not afraid to attack, and that showed in our ability to limit big plays.”
Offensively, the Steelers once again started slowly. Wilson threw for just 76 yards and was sacked four times in the first half. And the Steelers offense never solved the conundrum of the Ravens defense in the red zone, as Pittsburgh was 0-4 in that department entering Sunday. On their last trip to the red zone, Wilson threw an ill-advised pass that was intercepted by the Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey in the end zone.
As tough as it was at times, the Steelers offense excelled is the top-ranked offense. Pittsburgh had more first downs than Baltimore and passed them in the second half (after being outscored 199-93 in the first half). Perhaps the most impressive stat was that the Steelers rushed for nearly as many yards as a Baltimore (124 to 122 yards), even though the Ravens had the league's best run defense. Pittsburgh's success on the ground allowed them to control the ball for over 36 minutes while keeping Jackson and Co. off the field.
Wilson continued to build his relationship with him George Pickenswho finally lives up to his hype is the best playmaker. Pickens caught eight passes for 89 yards on Sunday, including his game-winning 37-yard grab late in the third quarter that helped extend Pittsburgh's lead to 15-10.
Wilson made up for his pick by hitting the tight end Darnell Washington (who was the intended target of his intercepted pass) for a 17-yard pickup on a third-and-7 play after Wilson picked off Jackson. The conversion set up Boswell's final field goal, which was the starter on Sunday History of multiple six field goal games in the same season (reverse, Ravens kicker Justin Tucker missed two field goals in the first half that proved costly).
Speaking of Wilson, the nine-time Pro Bowler is now 4-0 as the Steelers' starting quarterback. In Wilson, the Steelers have a quarterback who has been there before and knows what championship-level football looks like. Wilson helped lead Seattle to its first success He won the title in 2013 and almost successfully defended it.
After Sunday's game, Wilson was asked to compare this Steelers team to them Seahawks Squads. Wilson didn't elaborate, but he alluded to the fact that Pittsburgh has the ingredients that championship teams have.
“With these championship teams Teams, we had so many great talents,” Wilson said. “But the thing about talent is you always have to have the work ethic, the drive, the will to win and the ability to win close games. The ability to win on offense at a crucial moment to take the lead…” Defense makes a huge stop against a really good offense to keep the lead in Boz. These are the kind of championship moments you have to have.
“But we haven’t done anything yet. We still have a lot more football to play and that is the role we accept and enjoy. We’ll just stay the course.”
So far, the Steelers have remained on track, with a 3-0 start, a two-game losing streak, a quarterback change and their current five-game winning streak, which also includes thrilling victories over the Steelers Commanders and Ravens in consecutive weeks. The Steelers may not be the top team in the AFC, but if they continue to stay the course, they could end up putting themselves in a position to compete with the Chiefs for AFC supremacy.
