After a strong start to the game for the Pittsburgh Steelers offensively, things bogged down in a big way for the Black and Gold, stretching through the second quarter and into the third quarter.
Things were quite a mess as the Steelers punted the football five times after the touchdown drive on their second possession of the game, and fumbled three other times, losing possession twice.
But late in the third quarter the Steelers started to find some rhythm offensively. Then, on the first play of the fourth quarter, quarterback Mason Rudolph struck, hitting wide receiver Diontae Johnson for a 71-yard touchdown on an in-breaking route over the middle. Firing a dart in between the safety and the cornerback, he gave the Steelers a significant spark on what was ultimately the game-winning score.
After Pittsburgh’s 17-10 win, Rudolph told reporters that the explosive play to Johnson was a big energy boost for the Steelers, and that it came about because the Ravens tried taking away tight end Pat Freiermuth on the play, leading to Johnson being open for the score.
“It was back and forth, it was a punting match there in the third quarter for a while…third quarter was a little sloppy on mine and our part as an offense. And so that was a big energy boost,” Rudolph said regarding the touchdown, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page. “I know for our team and for our defense to get that lead and know that Baltimore was now gonna be in a drop-back passing situation.”
Prior to the explosive-play touchdown, the game was a bit of a slog. Both offenses were struggling to hold onto the football as the fumbles mounted and the turnovers started to get out of hand. Plus, there wasn’t much of anything happening in the passing game.
But then the Steelers were able to create some splash with a well-designed play.
With Freiermuth working over the middle of the field, the Steelers put Baltimore safety Marcus Williams in a bind having to deal with Freiermuth on an underneath route or taking on Johnson on the crossing route.
Williams chose wrong on the play and Rudolph made him pay, firing a dart to Johnson, who split Williams and cornerback Rock Ya-Sin and raced home for the 71-yard touchdown.
“They took Pat away and they did a good job of taking him away anywhere with the ball. They were dropping off defensive lineman or just hugging him immediately with a linebacker. And so it was sort of…I’m not gonna get into the read, but Diontae was a big part of the read and they took Pat away and so the ball went to him,” Rudolph said. “Man, he did a great job after the catch and split those guys and ran fast like he always does and scored. I was so happy for him.”
Throughout the game the Ravens did a nice job of taking Freiermuth away in the middle of the field, while also double teaming George Pickens on the outside. That lead to a lot of work for Johnson, who had five targets on the day out of just 20 passing attempts from Rudolph.
Johnson ran a great route on the play, created ample separation like he typically does as a great route runner, and then made a play after the catch. Splitting the two defenders, he took it all the way for the longest catch of his career.
It was a huge play in a big spot — the first play of the fourth quarter — that gave the Steelers the breathing room they needed, ultimately leading to the 17-10 win.
