Over the last two decades, no rivalry matchup in the NFL has been as heavily publicized, celebrated and craved for like the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens.
It’s as intense of a rivalry as they come. Though there is very clear respect there from both teams historically, there is also a real dislike for each other every time the two get together on the field for tough AFC North football.
The rivalry only intensified over the years as the Ravens and Steelers found themselves battling for division titles and then matching up in the playoffs, standing in the way of each other trying to reach the ultimate prize of winning a Super Bowl.
When the Steelers and Ravens meet twice in the regular season, more often than not the matchup has a playoff-like feel regardless of if it’s in Week One or Week 18. The games matter a great deal for both sides. It helps that all these years later head coaches Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh are still around. This will be the 34th meeting between the two on Sunday at Acrisure Stadium.
Tomlin holds a 16-14 edge in the regular season and a 2-1 edge in the playoffs head-to-head against Harbaugh for whatever that’s worth right now.
For former Ravens defensive end Chris Canty, who played in Baltimore from 2013-15, there is no better rivalry than Steelers-Ravens. Even though he was part of the rivalry for just three seasons, it had that type of impact on him.
“Because you’re standing in each other’s way to get to where you want to go. The stakes of it actually matter because both teams are always vying for an opportunity to win a title. Just like Ohio State-Michigan, the stakes is what makes it bigger than just a normal regular-season game,” Canty said, according to audio via the Unsportsmanlike ESPN Radio Show with Canty, Evan Cohen and Michelle Smallmon.
The stakes of the game matter no matter what the stage is, and the two teams are largely built to beat each other year after year, rather than competing for Super Bowls, though those two often go hand-in-hand.
Baltimore star linebacker Roquan Smith made an interesting comment Wednesday to reporters regarding the rivalry. He stated that “You’re not a Raven until you beat the Steelers,” according to the transcript provided by the team. So far in his career, Smith has beaten the Steelers just once, winning in Week 14 at Acrisure Stadium.
Pittsburgh then beat Baltimore in Week 17 thanks to a late touchdown pass from quarterback Kenny Pickett to running back Najee Harris on a scramble drill, beating Smith in coverage.
Though Smith is now officially a Raven, Canty took it a step further on Thursday on the radio show, stating that “You’re not a Raven until you cheap-shot a Steeler,” according to audio via ESPN Radio.
Well, then.
It’s important to note that Canty’s tone was in more of a joking fashion, but that’s largely the rivalry coming out. While there is a respect there between the two organizations and between the two head coaches and players with no player truly trying to injury anyone in the matchup, there is a real hatred there and a real urgency to try and establish dominance within the matchup, whether that’s between the white lines and the whistle or not.
Though the matchups in recent years have been quite physical, there really hasn’t been anything all that chippy or crossing the line overall.
But with Week Five’s matchup meaning a great deal to both teams involved and one team needing a get-right game after having its physicality questioned, don’t be surprised if Sunday’s 1 p.m. matchup resembles old-school Steelers-Ravens with a lot of hitting and a lot of chippiness after the play.
