For a moment, yesterday’s game against the Washington Commanders felt like a preview of the Baltimore Ravens. A chippy sequence between Pittsburgh Steelers LB Patrick Queen and TE John Bates that resulted in both men being called for offsetting personal fouls.
After the games, the normally quiet Bates told his side of the story and explained why he got so upset.
“I would say something like that has never really happened to me,” Bates said via the Commanders’ website. “Like I said, I was playing through the whistle. It’s just the way I play. If you go back and watch the film, in my opinion, it was him probably trying to do something dirty to me. Things happen. It is what it is.”
Here’s a look at the play. Bates engages Queen and runs his feet even as RB Austin Ekeler skirts past them. The two go to the ground and Queen lands on top of him. The two roll around for another moment before it’s broken up. Bates loses his helmet though it’s unclear if he took it off or if Queen helped him remove it.
A fourth-round pick in 2021, Bates has primarily served as a blocker this season, catching just three passes. An asset in getting the Commanders’ running game going, Washington struggled to find its footing without starter RB Brian Robinson Jr. and as the Steelers keyed in on taking away QB Jayden Daniels’ legs.
That play aside, Queen arguably had his best game as a Steeler. He finished the game with a team-high seven tackles, two of them for a loss, and a pass breakup. He showed his sideline-to-sideline range to handle the run game.
Ultimately, it’s football and two guys getting into a scrum in a moment like this is hardly new. The offsetting nature of the penalties also made the play less memorable, ultimately not changing the outcome of the play.
But it can be a teaching moment for the Ravens game and three other AFC North games the Steelers will play the next four weeks. It’ll be physical. It’ll be intense. Each coaching staff will just be reminding its team not to cross the line and get a reckless penalty that costs their team 15 yards and a first down.
In close contests like Pittsburgh-Baltimore almost always ends up being, a mistake like that could be the difference in the game. Especially for someone like Queen, who will be facing his former team for the first time, a reunion that’s certain to come with plenty of chirping.
