Steelers Now
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson had touchdown passes from 38, 50 and 64 yards out in Sunday night’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. To say the least, the Steelers failed to keep a lid on things.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin noted that they could’ve executed better and made better calls, but ultimately, Jackson was the difference maker.
“I think Lamar first and foremost on a lot of fronts,” Tomlin said on Tuesday when asked about why the Ravens were able to get explosive plays over the top of the defense. “He makes you do some things schematically that could make you uncomfortable, but if you’re trying to win moments in the game you do what you have to do.
“But also just his unique talents. I mean, one of those touchdowns we had two of our most significant guys, had him wrapped up in the backfield and he somehow came out of [Keeanu] Benton and [Alex] Highsmith and threw a long touchdown. So his talents were directly impactful. His talents also dictated schematics at times. To put it succinctly, Lamar Jackson.”
Jackson looked like Houdini on his 50-yard touchdown pass to Zay Flowers in the fourth quarter. Alex Highsmith and Keeanu Benton just couldn’t get the two-time league MVP to the ground.
I mean, that's just Lamar Jackson doing something almost nobody else can.
Highsmith, unblocked, has to make that play, but easier said than done.pic.twitter.com/YFEIqqF6Cu https://t.co/bkLoyzixLt
— Alan Saunders (@ASaunders_PGH) January 5, 2026
On the Ravens’ following possession, Jackson found Flowers for another explosive touchdown. This time a 64-yarder. Flowers was 9.3 yards from the nearest defender when he caught the pass on the 64-yard touchdown, per Next Gen Stats.
Tomlin said the Steelers loaded up to stop Jackson’s designed-run play ability. That strategy hurt them several times on Sunday night. It was a risk they were willing to make, however.
“We chose a hill to die on,” Tomlin said.
Zay Flowers was 9.3 yards from the nearest defender when he caught the pass on this 64-yard TD, per @NextGenStats
BALvsPIT on NBC
Stream on #NFLPlus + Peacockpic.twitter.com/YNkeGj8wJv— NFL+ (@NFLPlus) January 5, 2026
After Jackson’s second touchdown pass to Flowers, Aaron Rodgers led the Steelers down the field with under two minutes to play, leading one more vintage scoring drive in what might have been the final game of the his career. With the Steelers trailing by four, Rodgers got the Steelers into scoring range and the connected with Austin on a 26-yard score with just under a minute to play.
But the drama was nowhere near over yet. Veteran Steelers kicker Chris Boswell missed the extra point — his first such miss of the season — giving the Ravens a chance to win the game with a last-second field goal.
A long kickoff return by Keaton Mitchell set the Ravens up in excellent position, and Lamar Jackson hit Isaiah Likely with a fourth-down pass to...
