The Pittsburgh Steelers got embarrassed on the defensive side of the football against the Ravens as Baltimore ran for 299 yards. Speaking to the media after the game, S DeShon Elliott said it’s a matter of will when it comes to the run game, and that the Steelers didn’t do enough to stop Baltimore on the ground.
“We got a couple stops but not enough. 28 points on a defense like that and almost have 300 yards rushing, having 300 yards rushing on you is worse than almost having 300 yards passing because it’s like a will. They definitely put a belt to butt today,” Elliott said in his postgame press conference via the team’s YouTube channel.
“Belt to butt” is a good way to describe it. Baltimore just completely and utterly dominated the Steelers on the ground, using zone read to fool Pittsburgh’s defenders and create space for both RB Derrick Henry and QB Lamar Jackson on the ground. Henry had a huge day with 186 yards and two touchdowns, while Jackson did most of his work in the first half and finished with 15 carries for 81 yards.
Pittsburgh’s defense looked to be showing signs of life in Week 18 after a rough stretch from Weeks 15-17, but they got manhandled by the Ravens offense. It was an uphill battle to begin with against an explosive Ravens offense, but Pittsburgh’s defense just didn’t do what they had to do to win. The Ravens only threw for 175 yards and only attempted 21 passes because they were able to get pretty much whatever they wanted on the ground.
For a team that’s built their identity around defense and toughness, the Steelers didn’t show any of that fight tonight against the Baltimore rushing attack. They just got pushed around up front, getting dominated at the point of attack and being unable to bring down Henry at first contact. It’s just not a performance that’s going to win, especially not in the postseason, and it’s one we’ve seen from the Steelers far too often.
We’ll see what changes are coming this offseason, but Pittsburgh’s defense really underperformed down the stretch and didn’t play as well as that unit should have, given the talent they posses. As Elliott said, it’s a matter of will when it comes to the ground game, and the Ravens just seemed to want it more up front. Baltimore did a good job mixing looks and using motion, but at the end of the day, the Steelers weren’t tough enough and didn’t want it enough, and the Ravens made them pay.
