The Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers have gone in different directions over the past month. The Ravens, AFC North champions, have blown teams away over the past four weeks. Their average margin of victory was 23 points per game during that span, with the closest of those four being a 34–17 victory over Pittsburgh on December 21, in which the Ravens took control of the division en route to a wild card appearance. round home game. Lamar Jackson turned in a historic regular season, becoming the first quarterback in league history to throw 40 or more touchdown passes with four or fewer interceptions and the first player to throw for 4,000 yards while rushing for 800 yards, all en route to to become the best. NFL’s all-time leading rusher at the quarterback position.
The Steelers, meanwhile, are limping into the playoffs having lost four straight — including double-digit losses to both the Chiefs and Eagles, in addition to the big loss in Baltimore — and scoring just 14.3 points per game in those losses competition. To say the Steelers’ passing offense is struggling might be an understatement. They haven’t topped 200 passing yards since Dec. 1 and were under 165 passing yards in four of their last five games to end the year.
The Steelers won the first game between these teams 18-16 in Week 11 in Pittsburgh before the Ravens got their win in Week 16 in Baltimore.
How to watch the Steelers vs. Ravens AFC Wild Card Game
Time: 8:00 PM ET
Location: M&T Bank Stadium | Baltimore
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video
Live17 updates
-
-
Ravens are utilizing their running game much more than last year
Ravens already have more rush attempts (17) with 8:45 left in the 2nd quarter than they had in last year’s entire AFC Championship game loss to the Chiefs (16).
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) January 12, 2025
-
Ravens and Steelers open the second quarter with a pair of punts, with Pittsburgh opting to punt despite being on fourth-and-inches. So far, things are a bit dormant…will both teams wake up before halftime?
-
Ravens 7, Steelers 0 at the end of the first quarter
It’s been a pretty one-sided game so far, but Baltimore is still only up by one score. We’ll see if they get another one at the start of the second quarter.
-
Isaiah likely stretches to bring in a big pass from Lamar Jackson
-
Russell Wilson was fired again
It’s three-and-out for Pittsburgh after Russell Wilson gets sacked first and fails to get things going. Michael Pierce was there for the Ravens to get the big defensive play.
-
-
Lamar Jackson connects with Rashod Bateman for a touchdown
The Ravens score first and get a touchdown on their first drive. Lamar Jackson throws a beautiful pass up the middle to Rashod Bateman, who holds on to get Baltimore on the board.
-
Back-to-back big runs for Derrick Henry
RB Derrick Henry gets Baltimore across the middle with two huge carries in a row, picking up a 12-yard run and a 34-yard run back-to-back.
-
Lamar Jackson goes for a run and gets a first down
Lamar Jackson gets five consecutive rushes for a total of 22 yards, with the QB taking a first down and throwing for another. Who needs a running back when you have Lamar?
Lamar’s mother is directing the plays tonight
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) January 12, 2025
-
-
Steelers kick things off with a punt
On third-and-6, Russell Wilson did his best to move the ball to Pittsburgh, but Ravens linebacker Kyle Van Noy took him to the grass. Steelers are forced to punt on their first possession after failing to cross midfield.
-
-
Steelers and Ravens face each other for the third time this season – this is how the other meetings went
Baltimore and Pittsburgh have met many times, but the AFC North rivals are about to meet for the third time this year. Prior to today, the two have had two memorable encounters so far this season.
The teams first met on November 17, where Pittsburgh earned the 18–16 victory by scoring only field goals. Ravens kicker Justin Tucker, meanwhile, struggled mightily with the loss of two points and missed two field goal attempts in the first quarter.
The second game was on December 21, where Baltimore made up for the earlier loss by handily defeating the Steelers 34–17 to secure the AFC North title. It was a win that the Ravens really needed, and one that gives them a lot of confidence heading into today’s Wild Card game.
-
-
-
