The Pittsburgh Steelers will play their 18th game of the 2024 season on Saturday night on the road against the Baltimore Ravens. They’ll enter that Wild Card game contest as underdogs as well. Below are five key things I believe the Steelers will need to do to come away with their first playoff win since the 2016 season on Saturday night in Baltimore.
Oh Henry Part III – Ravens RB Derrick Henry ran wild on the Steelers’ defense just a few weeks ago. The bruising veteran managed to gain 162 yards on 24 carries and another 27 yards on two receptions. The Ravens leaned on Henry early and often in Week 16, leading to the running back having 75 yards on 13 carries at halftime.
Henry, by the way, registered just 13 total carries for 65 yards and a touchdown in the first regular season meeting between the two teams. The Steelers’ defense also forced Henry to fumble early in that game as well.
If the Steelers can’t better control Henry on Saturday night, it will make for yet another long game for Pittsburgh. Forcing the Ravens away from coming close to 25 total touches for Henry is likely the only chance the Steelers will have to keep the score down and, thus, ultimately and hopefully win the game. The Ravens are undefeated this season when Henry has rushed for 92 yards or more in a game. They are 2-5 in games this season that Henry has rushed for fewer than 92 yards.
No Flowers For Bateman – The Ravens will not have WR Zay Flowers Saturday night as he will miss the contest with a knee injury. That’s a big loss for the Ravens offense as Flowers leads the team in receptions (74) and yardage (1,059). Not having Flowers leaves Ravens WR Rashod Bateman as the team’s top player at his position. In the two previous games against the Steelers this season, Bateman has managed just three receptions for 44 yards and a touchdown.
The Steelers should probably consider letting CB Joey Porter Jr. shadow Bateman Saturday night without much help. That would allow the rest of the defense to concentrate more on the Ravens’ other top receiving targets, TE Mark Andrews, TE Isaiah Likely, and RB Justice Hill.
Win Toxicity In Charm City – This Steelers team is built to win because of takeaways on defense. In the last meeting against the Ravens, QB Russell Wilson had two crucial turnovers. One of those, a fumble, came at the end of a scramble deep inside Baltimore’s red zone, while the other was a pick-6 interception on an inaccurate throw. The Ravens fumbled three times in that last game in Pittsburgh, but the Steelers failed to recover any of them. Ultimately, the Steelers lost the turnover battle 2-1. To make matters worse, in that last meeting, the Steelers lost the explosive play battle to the Ravens by a 4-2 margin.
The Steelers’ offense was without the services of WR George Pickens in that contest, and it really showed. Pickens will play Saturday night, and he must produce a few explosive plays for the Steelers to have a chance at winning the TOX (turnovers + explosive plays) battle. The Steelers offense will likely need at least four explosive plays Saturday night to match or keep close to what the Ravens can register. If the Steelers don’t win the TOX battle by at least two on Saturday night, it’s hard to imagine they will ultimately win the game.
Can’t Zero Out Yet Again – In the Steelers’ last five playoff games that they have played dating back to the 2016 season, they failed to score any points in the first quarter. In those five games, they were outscored 66-0 in the first quarter, and they obviously went on to lose all of those contests.
This season, the Steelers have been miserable when it comes to scoring in the first quarter, with just 48 points in total in their 17 regular-season games. In their last five games to close out their 2024 regular season, the Steelers scored just six combined points in the first quarter. They have also failed to score any first-quarter points in their last three games. We must see some first-quarter points on Saturday night in Baltimore, preferably at least seven.
Leave It All Out on The Field, Including Fields – This is the playoffs now and so it’s win or go home for the Steelers, who last won a postseason game during the 2016 season. This team needs a playoff win on Saturday night and they must do everything they can to produce one against the highly favored Ravens.
Fake punts, trick plays, and the use of QB Justin Fields, in some instances, really need to be considered in this game. Nothing in the playbook should be held back as it’s now win or go home until the 2025 regular season. The Steelers have struggled to score points since Week 14. They’ll likely need at least 23 points to beat the Ravens on Saturday night.
