Overwhelming Majority of Pundits Predict Ravens Will Avenge Week 11 Loss
Despite keeping the Steelers out of the end zone when the Ravens visited Pittsburgh in Week 11, the Ravens lost to their archrival for the eighth time in nine games due to turnovers, penalties, and missed kicks.
Will the Ravens beat the Steelers instead of themselves when the teams face off again in a big AFC North showdown Saturday at M&T Bank Stadium?
An overwhelming majority of the pundits we sampled (52 of 59) believe so.
The Ravens (9-5) need to win to keep their hopes of winning the AFC North alive, as the Steelers (10-4) would capture the division title with a victory.
Here's what pundits are saying about the game:
The Ravens are the better team, and this time the better team will win.
The Baltimore Sun’s Childs Walker: "The Ravens can run on Pittsburgh and stop the Steelers' determined running game. Their offensive upside is far greater. They played perhaps their worst all-around game of the season in the first matchup and still lost by just two. They'll finally get it done at home with a divisional title hanging in the balance."
ESPN’s Seth Walder: "Bold prediction: The Ravens will have a win probability of over 90% at halftime. Despite their records, [ESPN's Football Power Index] views the Ravens as substantially better, and I'm inclined to believe the model."
It's Lamar Jackson's time to shine against the Steelers, who are 4-1 against him.
CBS Sports’ Pete Prisco: "The Ravens lost to the Steelers earlier this year, but this is the time they get even. Lamar Jackson was limited in terms of production in that game, but he won't be here. He will get the best of the Steelers defense as the Ravens make the division a race."
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio: "At home, late afternoon, lights on, national TV, Lamar Jackson shows up, gets his second win against the Steelers."
Both teams had a short week, but the Ravens have the advantage.
CBS Sports’ John Breech: "I'm rolling with the Ravens and it has everything to do with the schedule. The Steelers just got beat up in a road loss to the Eagles, and now, they have to turn around on a short week for another road game. Also, the NFL didn't do them any favors, because after they face the Ravens, the Steelers have to face the Chiefs four days later. That's three games in 11 days, which is brutal. The Ravens also have to play three games in 11 days, but while the Steelers were getting beat up in Philadelphia, the Ravens were resting their starters in a blowout win over the Giants."
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec: "The Steelers are coming off an extremely physical game against the Eagles, where the defense was on the field a lot. Star pass rusher T.J. Watt got banged up but is expected to play on Saturday. The Ravens are at home and at least should be the more desperate team."
The Steelers will rebound from their subpar showing against the Eagles.
Fox Sports’ Tom Brady: "The thing they did last time they played Baltimore, they possessed the football, 36-minute time of possession. It's got to be a similar formula. I think they're gonna learn from what happened [against the Eagles] and be much better [this] week."
The Steelers offense will struggle against the Ravens defense without WR George Pickens (hamstring), who has been ruled out.
The Athletic's Mike DeFabo: "Pickens was targeted a season-high 12 times and made a season-best eight catches in the last meeting against the Ravens, yet Pittsburgh still couldn't score a touchdown. Against a Baltimore defense that has improved, it could be tough sledding on Saturday."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "With Steelers wide receiver George Pickens sidelined by a hamstring injury, who's going to create big plays for Pittsburgh's offense? Who's going to give the defense a chance to catch its breath on the sideline? The Steelers can withstand only so many three-and-outs before finally giving way to Lamar Jackson, Derrick Henry and an explosive attack."
Steelers RB Najee Harris vs. Ravens LB Roquan Smith is a key matchup.
Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano: "Pittsburgh needs a dominant performance from Harris, especially [with] Pickens ruled out for the third consecutive game due to a hamstring injury. The Steelers don't have the firepower to keep pace with the Ravens in a shootout, but they can slow down the game with Harris and Jaylen Warren. Harris is searching for a bounce-back performance after a costly fumble in Philadelphia last week. Harris has 229 carries for 891 yards and five touchdowns this season. Smith, who has 126 total tackles, has helped Baltimore become the best run defense in the league, only allowing 80.7 rushing yards per game."
| Source | Prediction | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| ESPN | 9 of 11 panelists pick Ravens | |
| Baltimore Sun | 5 of 5 panelists pick Ravens | “The Ravens have looked like the better team going into almost every matchup with Pittsburgh over the past five years, but the Steelers have owned them in close game after close game. Picking the Ravens makes you Charlie Brown lining up to kick that next ball. At some point, Lamar Jackson has to break through with a great performance against his AFC North nemesis, and this feels like the occasion.” — Childs Walker |
| Baltimore Banner | 5 of 5 panelists pick Ravens | “The Ravens are 6.5-point favorites for a reason. They have home-field advantage. They have a health advantage. They have a quarterbacking advantage. If that’s not enough to get it done Saturday against a talented, if flawed, Pittsburgh team, it’ll be hard to imagine the Ravens finally breaking through in the playoffs.” — Jonas Shaffer |
| USA Today | 5 of 6 panelists pick Ravens | |
| NFL.com | 5 of 5 panelists pick Ravens | “Jackson's 66.2 passer rating against Pittsburgh is his worst against any opponent -- and nearly 38 points lower than his average against all other teams (104.1), per NFL Research. Related: Jackson is an ugly 1-4 versus the Steelers and 66-20 against all other teams. John Harbaugh and the Ravens know what's at stake on Saturday, and they know they've been on the wrong end of this rivalry for too long now. I expect this game to be close throughout (28 of 36 Mike Tomlin-Harbaugh meetings have been decided by one score), but this time, the Ravens protect their house (and their division crown), assuring that the AFC North title won't be decided until Week 18.” —Ali Bhanpuri |
| NFL Network | 7 of 10 panelists pick Ravens | |
| Sporting News | Ravens 24, Steelers 17 | “The Steelers stymied the Ravens' defensively in the first matchup, but now T.J. Watt (ankle) is hurting and Pittsburgh has less offensive firepower with George Pickens (hamstring) also on the shelf. Lamar Jackson got revved up again after the bye and will make amends for the earlier loss vs. Pittsburgh with sharp downfield passing. Russell Wilson once again will be hampered by one-dimensional limitations.” — Vinnie Iyer |
| CBS Sports | 7 of 8 panelists pick Ravens | “This is an enormous game in the AFC North. The Ravens lost to the Steelers earlier this year, but this is the time they get even. Lamar Jackson was limited in terms of production in that game, but he won't be here. He will get the best of the Steelers defense as the Ravens make the division a race.” — Pete Prisco |
| Pro Football Talk | 2 of 2 panelists pick Ravens | “The Steelers have won eight of nine over the Ravens. It’s time for that trend to reverse itself.” — Mike Florio |
| Sports Illustrated | 6 of 6 panelists pick Ravens |
Pundit Says Ravens Should Be a Conference Favorite
With a dominant offense and improved defense, the Ravens are as good as any team in the AFC, ESPN's Paul Hembo said.
"It is the best offense in the league play for play. But the reason I'm so encouraged by what the Ravens have done lately is because even though they've split their last four games, the defense has improved considerably," Hembo said. "The Ravens have the kind of statistical profile that suggest to me they should be a conference favorite right in line with Buffalo, right up there with Kansas City and anyone else when it comes to coming out of the AFC.
"I think they're going to win this weekend. I think they might well run the table the rest of the season."
The Ravens play at the AFC South-leading Houston Texans in Week 17 before hosting the Cleveland Browns in the regular-season finale.
Jackson and Todd Monken Ranked Among Top Three QB-Coach Combinations
The 33rd Team’s Jeff Diamond ranked the top 10 quarterback-coach (either head coach or offensive coordinator) combinations for this season. Jackson and Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken were No. 3.
"Jackson is having a career year as the league's top-rated passer (120.7 with 34 TD passes, only three interceptions, and a career-best 68.1 percent completion rate)," Diamond wrote. "He once again leads all QBs in rushing with 743 yards (and he's run for three touchdowns). His 4,323 combined yards passing and running constitute 73 percent of the Ravens' total yards.
"Todd Monken is the Ravens' offensive coordinator who works closely with Jackson as they operate the league's No. 1 offense (424 yards per game). Baltimore's passing game ranks third (up from 21st last season), which is the first time it's been in the top 10 during Jackson's career. The 58-year-old Monken … has helped Jackson elevate his game — especially as a passer—to the point that he was league MVP last season before this year's excellent performance."
The Bills' Josh Allen and OC Joe Brady (No. 1) and Detroit Lions' Jared Goff and OC Ben Johnson (No. 2) were the duos ranked ahead of Jackson and Monken.
