Baltimore Beatdown
Tonight’s matchup between the Ravens and the Steelers might be the most consequential game in the history of this rivalry.
Sure, the two teams met in the 2008 AFC Championship Game with a Super Bowl appearance on the line, but you could argue that the stakes will be even higher on Sunday night. This game will not just determine the winner of the AFC North and the No. 4 seed in the AFC playoffs. It could determine the future of both franchises.
Homegrown whispers of moving on from John Harbaugh and Mike Tomlin have finally emerged from Baltimore and Pittsburgh as serious talking points in the national spotlight. Both teams have long prioritized continuity and contending every year, and Harbaugh and Tomlin have fit the bill for almost 20 years.
But Harbaugh is about to finish his seventh season with Lamar Jackson as his starting quarterback without a Super Bowl appearance, much less a Lombardi Trophy. The Ravens’ failures have typically related to their defense or refusal to rely on their running game, two hallmarks of the identity Harbaugh has embodied in Baltimore.
Tomlin, meanwhile, kept Pittsburgh competitive after Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, but they never had enough – especially at quarterback – to make a run in the playoffs. A Tomlin-coached team has never finished with a losing record, keeping them too far out of range to draft the kind of franchise quarterback they so desperately need.
Both teams have to decide if they want to remain in these cycles, and tonight’s game could be a major factor. One team will achieve their basic annual goal – win the AFC North and make the playoffs – and the other won’t. At a minimum, the loser will have to consider a change, while the winner may put the thought out of their mind entirely.
At 8:20 p.m. ET, the rubber will meet the road, and the future of both franchises may hang in the balance.
