Ultimately, the Pittsburgh Steelers weren’t good enough in their most recent game against the Baltimore Ravens. They had opportunities to win that game and capture the AFC North crown, but they made too many mistakes. One of the costliest gaffes came when Russell Wilson fumbled near the goal line in the second quarter. It felt like that play took the wind out of the Steelers’ sails. Ravens outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy recovered that fumble, and even he seems confused why Wilson didn’t just slide.
“I lost contain where it was like, ‘Oh no,'” Van Noy said recently on his McCoy and Van Noy podcast. “Then I hustled to the ball. Ardarius Washington, number 29, made a hell of a play on Russell [Wilson]. I don’t know what he was thinking. He should have just slid, but he wanted to try to score. AD knocked the ball off of him, and your boy had to get on that thing.”
That’s really the question everyone was asking as soon as the play ended. Why didn’t Wilson slide? The answer is as obvious as Van Noy stated: Wilson wanted to score. He saw daylight, and he raced toward it. Unfortunately, Washington had a little more juice than Wilson, and he knocked the ball loose.
That play wasn’t the only reason the Steelers lost, but it was a game-changing moment. Before that fumble, the game was tied 7-7, and the Steelers’ offense was in a groove. Wilson made several dynamic plays, looking like the best version of himself. It seems like he was feeling himself a little too much though.
Rather than having the ball inside the Ravens’ 5-yard line with a chance to take the lead, the Steelers coughed the ball up. The Ravens proceeded to capitalize on that gift, driving almost the length of the field to score a touchdown. It was a backbreaking mistake.
It does rub salt in the wound that even Ravens players are confused why Wilson didn’t just slide. However, that wasn’t the only misstep that led to the Steelers’ loss. Their defense played one of its worst games of the year. Wilson threw a gut-wrenching pick-six later in the game. Even some of the play calling was questionable. The Steelers lost as a team.
Going forward, hopefully Wilson is more careful with the football. One of the biggest reasons the Steelers were winning games was because they were protecting the football. It would’ve been nice to score on that run, but sometimes, living to fight another day is good enough.
