Baltimore Beatdown
Here’s the MVP, Winners and Losers from the Ravens’ 28-14 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card round.
The Baltimore Ravens welcomed the Pittsburgh Steelers to M&T Bank Stadium by throttling them with violence on offense and defense and breaking their psyche by halftime. When all was said and done, the Ravens sent the Steelers packing, 28-14.
There was no greater player on the football field than Jackson on Saturday. An MVP possessed with excellent decision-making, precision passing and electric runs that buried the Steelers in a three-touchdown deficit in 30 minutes.
It’s abundantly clear Jackson is the best player in football and nowhere was it shown greater than against the Steelers — a known issue team for Jackson — in the playoffs — where he receives his greatest critique.
Head Coach John Harbaugh: I’m going to shoot things straight here. The pressure on Harbaugh to win this game was significant. Steelers on a four-game losing streak. Ravens on a four-game winning streak. Ravens scored 30+ past four weeks. Steelers hadn’t scored 20 or more in the past four. The Ravens had to win. And they did. Harbaugh outcoached Mike Tomlin for the second time this season. He did so without Zay Flowers. His team was fired-up, physical and ready to contend. Whoever lost this one had a real chance of not being in the AFC North any longer. Harbaugh prevailed, and for good reason.
Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken: The play-calling in the first half surged the Ravens to victory. From gashing the Steelers with QB option runs to Derrick Henry in the Wildcat to trusting excellent play-calling to give Jackson and the offense the best chance of success, he called a near-perfect first half.
There was never any panic. Pure resolve, confidence and no wavering.
Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr: A first-half for the ages, a couple bad plays of execution that I don’t believe was his play calling, and holding the Steelers to 14 points. They allowed just 59 net yards in the first half and two first downs. Hiccups happened, yes. But the Ravens’ defense clobbered the Steelers and Orr gets his first playoff win as a head coach.
Derrick Henry: The run game went head-to-head with the tough, physical Steelers defense and it was Pittsburgh who flinched first. Henry hammered 100 rush yards in the first half and a touchdown. In the second half, just as the Steelers found momentum with a touchdown, Henry put the Ravens backup by 21 points with a 44-yard rushing touchdown. In all, Henry finished with 26 carries for 186 yards and two touchdowns.
Rashod Bateman: With no Zay Flowers, the Ravens needed somebody to step up. Bateman answered the bell with the opening touchdown.
Mark Andrews: Multiple third-down conversions via direct snap Tush Push and two receptions for 27 yards. Contributed where needed and was never overextending. A good start to what could be a greater, more impactful playoff run.
Tylan Wallace: After...
