The Pittsburgh Steelers enter halftime with a 10-point deficit, having netted just one field goal in the first half. They turned the ball over on downs on the opening drive in field goal range, and Ben Roethlisberger threw an interception to end two of the Steelers’ drives. The Baltimore Ravens drove down the field on their opening possession for a touchdown, converting four third downs in the process. Justin Tucker added two field goals, including a 50-yarder.
Antwon Blake was ruled out for the rest of the game for back spasms.
The Ravens began the second half with the ball after deferring to start the game. Chris Boswell‘s kickoff was low and short, fielded near the 20 and returned to the 32. On first and 15 after a false start, Ryan Mallett‘s first pass was batted away by Ross Cockrell. After an incompletion in the direction of Chris Givens, Mallett checked down to this fullback five yards shy of the first. Sam Koch‘s punt was fielded at the 21 and Antonio Brown was tackled at the spot.
Brown was tackled after a short reception on first down. Martavis Bryant could not hold on to his first target. On third and five, it was back to Brown for seven and the conversion, the Steelers now two for six on third down.
Roethlisberger looked down the field to Bryant on the next play, and the Steelers were able to draw a pass interference, spotted at the Ravens’ 38 for 29 yards. Darrius Heyward-Bey caught his first pass of the game for about 10 yards.
Inside the 30, DeAngelo Williams got his first carry of the half for three yards. Another flag flew as Roethlisberger looked to find Brown in the end zone, setting up first and goal at the one. Williams punched it in from one yard out for his 10th rushing touchdown of the season. It was the first time a Steeler recorded 10 rushing touchdowns in a season since 2010.
Another short kickoff put the Ravens at around the 35. Jarvis Jones batted the first pass down. Brandon Boykin netted a sack on second down, and a misfire on third down resulted in a punt. Koch’s second punt of the half went out of bounds at the 23.
A 19-yard catch by Brown got the drive started. Roethlisberger overthrew Miller on the second play of the drive. Bryant made one player miss on a screen for six yards. On third and four, Za’Darius Smith brought down the quarterback for the sack. The Ravens called for a fair catch at about the 13 in spite of having room for a return.
Terrance West was stopped running left at the line of scrimmage on first down. Givens hauled in a seven-yard pass to set up third and three. Mallett hit Aiken over the middle for the conversion.
Buck Allen managed about a yard on second effort on the following play. On second and nine, he punched through a tackle attempt by Cockrell on a pass to make it third and one. Mallett hit his fullback for the conversion on a short pass.
From the 44, Allen was stopped near the line of scrimmage for a short loss. Chris Matthews was brought down after about a five-yard reception. On third and five, another conversion made the Ravens nine for 15 on third down.
Mallett’s deep pass to Matthews was well-defended by Cockrell. On second down, Will Allen made the tackle on a draw after two yards. A third-down stop was finally achieved, tackling the fullback after no gain on a short pass. Koch’s punt was downed at about the eight.
A check down to Williams picked up the first down to the 19. Another pass to Williams was stopped after one yard. On second down, Markus Wheaton hauled in a 15-yard pass. From the 35, Williams was good for close to three. Roethlisberger looking for Brown threw an interception to Jimmy Smith for his second of the game.
After the turnover, the Ravens took over at their own 42. A three-yard pass to Williams started out the drive. Ryan Jensen was flagged for unnecessary roughness after an incompletion, making it second and 22. Mallett hit Givens down the field on a straight sprint for a big gain to the 32 for 39 yards. After a false start, he lofted the ball to his fullback, wide open for another big gain, setting up first and goal at the three.
On first and goal, Mallett’s pass was out of the back of the end zone. Allen punched it in on second down to make it a two-score game at 20-10.
Taking over at the 20, Roethlisberger connected with Miller for eight yards. On second down, the run-pass option play fake to Williams left Miller open for a nice gain down the seam near midfield. Williams was good for eight, and another Miller reception converted. A check down to Williams in space ate up more yards into the red zone to the 15.
A seven-yard pass to Wheaton cut inside the 10-yard line. Smith was flagged for pass interference in the end zone against Wheaton to set up another first and goal at the one-yard line. At the goal line, the Steelers spread it five wide and a pick six off a tipped pass was called back because of an offside. Will Johnson lined up for his first fullback snap of the season, but Williams was tackle for a loss at the two. Williams bent the corner for the touchdown on second down to make it a three-score margin again.
After a return of about 30 yards, the Ravens began the drive at the 24. Allen found room up the middle for about 15 yards. Another 10-yard run netted another first down. Yet another solid run for six yards set up second and four. West was stopped after a three-yard gain. On third and short, it was Tuitt with the stop to force the punt. Koch’s punt took a hard roll into the end zone for the touchback.
A short pass over the middle picked up only three yards. Wheaton was able to beat one defender for 19 yards up the left sideline and out of bounds. Another Roethlisberger sack made it second and eighteen, but Williams was only able to gain three yards on the screen. Roethlisberger looked long for Bryant, who nearly caught the ball as he was falling down, but it set up a fourth and 15. His pass looking for Wheaton in tight coverage was incomplete, resulting in a turnover on downs at the Steelers’s 37.
Cameron Heyward made the run stop for a loss of a couple on first down. After burning the final timeout with 1:43 to play. On third and 11, the Ravens gained one yard and set up a 12-second difference. The ball rolled into the end zone for the touchback with four seconds to play. The lateral-fest at the end of the game ended in a fumble as the Steelers fumbled away the game.
