The 9-5 Baltimore Ravens welcome bitter division rival the 10-4 Pittsburgh Steelers to town on Saturday. These two teams met just a little over a month ago with the Steelers coming away with the victory. It was arguably the worst game the Ravens had played at least on the offensive side of the ball, and Saturday hopes to be a turning point for a Ravens team that has lost their last eight games against the Steelers.
The Ravens will be thin this week at the wide receiver position as Nelson Agholor (concussion) has been ruled out while Rashod Bateman (foot) is listed as questionable after not practicing on Thursday. Practice squad receiver Anthony Miller has been elevated for Saturday looking to play in his first game this season. In other Ravens injury news cornerback Jayln Armour-Davis (hamstring) has been ruled out, while guard Daniel Faalele (knee) and outside linebacker Odafe Oweh (ankle) are both listed as questionable.
For the Steelers wide receiver George Pickens (hamstring) will miss his third straight game and safety DeShone Elliott (hamstring) have been ruled out. Backup quarterback Justin Fields (abdominal) has also been ruled out meaning Kyle Allen will be the backup to starter Russell Wilson. Cornerback Donte Jackson (back) and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi (groin) are both listed as questionable. Outside linebacker T.J. Watt who sprained his ankle last week against the Steelers practiced in full on Thursday and does not have an injury designation for Saturday.
Players to Watch:
Devontez Walker
Rookie fourth-round pick Devontez Walker has struggled to get play time so far this season serving only on special teams when he is active on game days. But all that is likely to change come Saturday with fellow receiver Nelson Agholor out with a concussion, Rashod Bateman’s status still up in the air, and now former Ravens Diontae Johnson who was waived from the team on Friday.
Walker made is first career catch last Sunday against the Giants which also happened to be his first NFL touchdown. Saturday could be a coming out party for Walker and could possibly supplant himself as a key rotational receiver come playoff time.
Nick Herbig
Second year linebacker Nick Herbig has had a solid sophmore season in the NFL as he currently has 4.5 sacks on the year and four forced fumbles, second most in the NFL. Herbig alongside teammate T.J. Watt have made the Steelers into a top 10 defense.
With Watt dealing with a sprained ankle and not fully 100%, Herbig could be tasked to pick up some of the production from a less than healthy Watt. It’s no easy task, but Herbig did force a fumble in the Steelers first meeting with the Ravens in November.
Prediction
The Ravens desperately need this game in more ways than one. For starters a loss on Saturday secured the AFC north division title for the Steelers, meaning the Ravens will have to hit the road for their first game of the playoffs. Second the Ravens are playing to secure their own playoff spot two weeks before the end of the season and make sure they are at worst the five seed in the AFC playoffs.
There is a lot to play for as are most Ravens-Steelers matchups, and with that will undoubtably be a closely contested game. Saturday will be just the second time Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has played the Steelers at home, and I think that is key. While the Ravens play poorly in Pittsburgh, they tend to play the Steelers much better at home, and with Jackson healthy I think this could be a big game for this Ravens offense. I think the game will remain close, but there won’t be any missed Justin Tucker field goals making it hard for the Steelers to rely on and win with just field goals like they did in November. Give me the Ravens 23-20.
Line: Baltimore -7
Over/Under: 44.5
All-Time Record: Pittsburgh leads series 33-24
Last Meeting: 11/17/24 Pittsburgh 18-16
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