The Ravens needed a win like Saturday’s, and the rest of the AFC should take notice

The Baltimore Ravens crossed a major hurdle this weekend in terms of their hopes of competing for a Super Bowl.

They’ve battled the Pittsburgh Steelers for much of the past few years, but the Ravens beat the Steelers 34-17 on Saturday and are now tied for first place in the AFC North at 10-5 with two games remaining in the regular season. After a rough midseason stretch, the Ravens are starting to turn a corner and are starting to look like the championship-caliber team everyone expects them to be.

Baltimore’s defense had one of its best games of the season against the Steelers (who were missing their best wide receiver in George Pickens). They held them to 1.7 points per game. drive and had three sacks and five tackles for loss, and also returned an interception for a touchdown that sealed the game at the end. This defense has come a long way from the early part of the season where they routinely allowed explosive plays and were ripped through the air. They held the Pittsburgh passing game to -0.27 expected points per game. dropback and did a good job of surviving the few explosive plays that Russell Wilson was able to create.

The defense generally dominated the Steelers in the second half, holding them to just a 31.8% success rate, according to TruMedia. They were able to really put the clamps on as Pittsburgh tried to get back into the game, especially when it was necessary to throw the ball. All Wilson and his teammates could manage was 6.1 net yards per carry. attempt in the second half, which just wasn’t enough with the Ravens offense taking over the game.

That’s why the defensive improvement is so crucial for this Baltimore team – the offense is capable of winning a Super Bowl. Lamar Jackson threw three more touchdowns to give him 37 passing touchdowns for the season to just four interceptions, and Derrick Henry was able to run over the Steelers to close out the game. In the second half, Henry had 87 yards on just 11 carries and averaged an obscene 5.4 yards before contact. When the game becomes one-dimensional and all the Ravens have to do is lean on the run game to close things out, they become one of the most dominant teams in the league. They might have finally found the perfect running mate for Jackson to actually win the elusive Super Bowl that they is able to win.

Jackson had the good game against the Steelers that had eluded him, Henry redeemed himself after fumbling in the first matchup between these teams, and the defense was able to perform up to their talent level. Getting a home game in the first round of the playoffs will be important, but this Ravens team still needs to be seen as a dangerous and credible threat to contend for the Super Bowl title. The Ravens’ offense has still been able to score 30 points in three of their last four games, falling just short in a loss to the Eagles. The stability that Henry has brought could be the reason why the Ravens can actually break through this time.

The top of the AFC is incredibly loaded this year, but Baltimore should be deservedly considered in that group. If it can come just enough defense going forward, the rest of the conference should watch out.