Pittsburgh-Baltimore Showdown Weekend: Steelers Friday Night Five Questions

Happy Friday, and I hope yinz are doing well.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off a trying loss to the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday, beat up in a 27-13 defeat. The Steelers held the ball for just over 20 minutes of the game and had just two second-half possessions, the tide turning on a Najee Harris fumble and 4th-and-7 punt decision by Mike Tomlin. Pittsburgh’s defense held RB Saquon Barkley in check but WRs A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith each went for 100-plus yards and a touchdown.

The Steelers will be on the road on a short week for their biggest game of the season, an AFC North showdown against the Baltimore Ravens. If Pittsburgh pulls off the upset, it will win the division. If not, it’ll be a wide-open finish the final two weeks (though the Steelers winning out will still give them the AFC North crown).

Pittsburgh has won eight of its last nine against Baltimore, but this might be its toughest test yet.

As always, we’re here to bring whatever happens throughout the weekend. Until then, we have five questions for you to answer below.

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Peace and love, peace and love!

1 – As always, we ask: will the Steelers beat the Ravens? 

2 – Since we won’t have a Friday Five before the team’s next game on Christmas Day against the Chiefs, we’ll also ask: will Pittsburgh beat Kansas City? 

3 – Will Minkah Fitzpatrick generate a takeaway of any sort (an INT, FF that results in a turnover, or a FR) in either of the next two games? 

4 – Who rushes for more yards: Lamar Jackson or Jaylen Warren + Cordarrelle Patterson?

5 – Will Pittsburgh score a first-drive TD in either of its next two games? 

Tiebreaker: Combined number of first quarter points the Steelers score against Baltimore and Kansas City combined. 

Tiebreaker 2: Patrick Queen tackles in Weeks 16 and 17 combined.

Recap of 2024 Week 15 Friday Night Five Questions

Keep answering folks. You have to play to win!

Question 1: The Eagles thumped Pittsburgh, 27-13, in a very physical game. For the first time this season, a majority of Steelers Depot respondents predicted the Steelers losing. Just over 55% of respondents (31 of 56) made the difficult call to pick up a point.

Question 2: Depot respondents picked seven different Steelers to be Russell Wilson’s primary target. Pat Freiermuth was the overwhelming favorite with 26 votes (46.4 percent). Jaylen Warren was next with 13 votes. Freiermuth led all Steelers with six targets. Calvin Austin III, with five targets, was next. Just four folks gave Austin the nod.

Question 3: Saquon Barkley gained 31 yards in the first half but stood on the sideline for most of the second quarter. He reentered the game to start the second half and ended up with 19 carries for 65 yards. Well below his game average coming into the game. A very narrow 51 percent majority (28 of 55) predicted Barkley rushing for under 95.5 yards.

Question 4: The Eagles’ defense dominated the Steelers’ offense. Four of the Steelers’ nine drives were three and outs. The Steelers managed to produce just 163 yards of offense. Just 20 percent of respondents (11 of 55) predicted Pittsburgh under 284 yards of offense. It was their lowest production in a game this season.

Question 5: Chris Boswell converted both of his field goal attempts. The median response of Depot responses predicted Boswell kicking three. Thirty-one percent of respondents (17 of 55) picked up a point by predicting Boswell kicking two field goals.

REMINDER: Once Beaver Falls Hosiery “likes” your response, the answers are recorded on a spreadsheet. If you want to revise an answer prior to the cutoff (usually kickoff), the best way you can ensure that we accurately record your final answers is replying to your original response and NOT editing it.

Here are the consensus answers of Steelers Depot respondents compared to the correct answers:

Steelers Depot respondents answered three of five questions correctly as a group.

Nine people answered four of five questions correctly and missed the five-point weekly bonus by one question. Guillermo Garcia-Gomez and Jason W swept the questions.

For the tiebreaker, Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren, and Cordarrelle Patterson combined for 35 rushing yards. The median response predicted 118.5 yards. Guillermo said 121 yards. But Jason W came closer with 89 yards.

Kudos Jason W! Please send me a DM (subBurgher on twitter or quarternelson on Instagram or email quarter_nelson@yahoo.com) with your PayPal address to receive your winnings. Alternatively, you can kick your share back towards the next pot or donate it to the Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. Or opt for a Steelers Depot polo shirt in lieu of the cash prize. Entirely up to you, just let me know.

Jason W leaped into money positions with his 11-point power move. And he is now in a second-place tie with Andy N. Style Points remains in first and will be hard to dethrone with three weeks to go. But that is three more opportunities to achieve a weekly win.

Here is the 2024 leaderboard after Week 15:

*New to the leaderboard