Labriola on the loss to the Ravens

Sometimes it’s not that complicated. Sometimes the cliché is actually what tells the story.

Such was the case in Baltimore on Saturday, as the Ravens kept the Steelers from winning the AFC North Division and instead clinched a spot in the 2024 playoffs with a decisive 34-17 victory, a result that was facilitated by turnovers they made, and takeaways, they wasted. ‘Tis the season for gift-giving, and the Steelers were far too generous with an opponent far too talented to need such largesse.

Whenever these teams meet, and it has been at least twice a season every season since 1996, the games are always physical and closely contested. Turning to numbers to support “closely contested” reveals these: the last nine and 15 of the last 19 were one-score games.

And when history so forcefully warns you that these games will be decided by less than 10 percent of the total snaps, it’s suicidal to turn the ball over. All the way up to each and every one of these cliffhangers, taking care of the football is emphasized, even preached. And every time one of the contestants fails to heed the warning, they are forced to learn the same painful lesson and feel its sting as they watch their rivals celebrate their misery.

The Steelers came into this game with a 10-4 record in 2024 and 8 wins in their last 9 in this particular series, and they woke up today with a 10-4 record and 8 wins in their last 10 in this particular series due to turnover/turnover ratio.

There were the actual turnovers – 2 by the Steelers (a lost fumble by Russell Wilson and an interception by CB Marlon Humphrey) to 1 by the Ravens (an interception by FS Minkah Fitzpatrick) – but just as significant to 34-17 were three other times, where the Ravens put the ball on the ground and somehow managed to recover it every time.

Yes, the Ravens passing game dominated, led as it was by Derrick Henry’s soul-sucking 162 yards on 24 carries (6.8 average), and yes, Lamar Jackson finally did the things against the Steelers that he’s done against every other team in the league. But had the Steelers used e.g. 2 of those three opportunities, when the football rolled around unattended, the entire complexion of the game was different because of when those opportunities presented themselves.

The Ravens got the ball first, and on the sixth play of the game, Alex Highsmith strip-sacked Lamar Jackson, but the guy who didn’t get Highsmith blocked — LT Ronnie Stanley — fell on the ball to save the day for Baltimore. The first time the Steelers got the ball, they went three-and-out, but when James Pierre stripped punt returner Desmond King, it was recovered by Ravens ILB Chris Board and advanced another 12 yards to the Steelers’ 41-yard line.

That’s two sudden possessions that could have been but weren’t in the first 6 minutes of a game that is historically decided by one score. Failing to take advantage of both is how you continue to lose games that are historically decided by one score.

“We didn’t do what we needed to do to secure the win today,” coach Mike Tomlin said, “so I congratulate the Ravens on their performance. Specifically, we didn’t control the run game. We never did. When you do that. ‘t, you have to get some splash plays or win the turnover game in a big way and we didn’t. We had some ground ball opportunities that we obviously didn’t get. we turned the ball over going in that took 7 points off the board and they had a pick-6. The rest is history, as they say.”

The “turnover that took 7 points off the board” came in the form of a Russell Wilson fumble that prevented the Steelers from taking a 14-7 lead with 10 minutes left in the first half, and CB Marlon Humphrey’s pick-6 early in the fourth quarter turned a 24-17 deficit into a 31-17 deficit that almost put an exclamation point on the result.

“I thought we had a chance to go to the end zone,” Wilson said. “I tried to cut back and just got hit right before I hit the ground and the ball came out. I just cut off the block. I didn’t want to slide there either. I felt like we could have gotten in the end zone I just tried to get a touchdown and go for it.

Clearly, the Steelers have other aspects of their performance that need to improve – and immediately – if they are to successfully navigate the challenges that will be presented over the next month.

By the players’ and coaches’ own estimation, tackling has been JV lately, and all too often miscommunication rears its ugly head at the most inopportune moments. To be fair, the defense started the game vs. The Ravens were without three starters — CB Donte Jackson, SS DeShon Elliott and DE Larry Ogunjobi — and then the unit ended up being without 75 percent of its starting secondary after Joey Porter Jr. for most of the game. was sidelined with a knee/calf injury.

The offense isn’t dynamic enough to generate chunk plays consistently, meaning touchdown drives end in 10-play, 73-yard or an 8-play, 88-yard variety. And having to rely on so many snaps to change the scoreboard risks having a penalty or a sack or a drop ruin it all. It could be argued that George Pickens’ hamstring injury has had a profound impact there, but in just a few days, Patrick Mahomes’ Chiefs come to town with a chance to clinch the top seed in the AFC — and the accompanying first-round bye in the playoffs — with win Christmas Day.

“It’s hard, but who said football was easy,” Cam Heyward said. “We talk about it. If you’re a veteran or you’re a pro, you take care of your body tomorrow, but you also watch film, whether it’s this game or the opponent’s. That’s how we roll. We come not with excuses, we deal with what we have and we move on.”

Admittedly, it’s hard to imagine this after the way they’ve played the last two weeks against the Eagles and Ravens, but the Steelers know that if they win their final two regular season games — against the Chiefs and then the Bengals, both at Acrisure Stadium — they will win the AFC North Division, no. 3 in the playoffs and a likely Wild Card round against either Denver or the Chargers, also at Acrisure Stadium.

“We can’t worry about the next two,” Wilson said. “We just have to worry about the next one coming. We have to play on Wednesday. It’s going to be a great environment, coming home in front of our fans. Obviously, we’ve been on the road in the past two weeks, so to play in front our fans and Terrible Towels and all that on Christmas Day, it’s a special day. You know it’s going to be a great game, so the best we can do is keep our heads up.

“I think the best thing we can do is just look forward to playing in front of our fans and coming home and fighting for what we came here to do, and that opportunity is still in front of us.”