Patrick Queen probably has his two games against the Baltimore Ravens circled. He just had to flip through his calendar to get there. Even though Pittsburgh won’t play their first game against the Ravens until Week 11, their first divisional contest of the year, Queen isn’t spending much energy on the quirks of the Steelers’ 2024 schedule.
“Line it up and play it, I don’t care,” Queen told reporters Thursday via the team’s YouTube channel. “It’s at the end of the season. That’s the best time to play football. You know what type of football that’s gonna be. That’s what I’m all for. So I can’t wait.”
Pittsburgh will host Baltimore in Week 11, a Nov. 17 contest, before travelling to play the Ravens in Week 16. That’ll come on a Saturday, a short week for both teams that allows them to play four days later on Christmas Day. Both will be difficult matchups, Baltimore drawing Houston, and Pittsburgh seeing Kansas City.
For the Steelers, waiting until Week 11 to begin divisional play is the latest the team has gone in franchise history, breaking the previous mark set in 1991. That year, Pittsburgh didn’t play anyone in the AFC Central until the Cleveland Browns in Week 9 (they were also the only AFC division with only four teams, the AFC East and West consisting of five squads. Such a setup would exist until the Jacksonville Jaguars began play in 1995.
Patrick Queen took plenty of heat from Ravens’ fans, and teammates, when he defected from Baltimore to Pittsburgh. It’s not a move often made willingly. But Queen has gone to bat for his new organization, praising the coaching staff and culture while dismissing the idea he accepted a cheap contract.
The literal middle of the Steelers’ defense, Queen is expected to have an every down role at linebacker. His play greatly improved over his final two years with the Ravens but he’ll have to prove he maintain a high-level no longer playing alongside Roquan Smith and while wearing the green dot, a task Smith absorbed last season. With contributions from run thumper Elandon Roberts and upside rookie Payton Wilson, the Steelers could be strong at inside linebacker in 2024.
