The Steelers took the field to take on their hated division rival Baltimore Ravens tonight to get a chance to send them to 0-4 for the first time in their history. The started electric with the honoring Hall of Fame Steelers running back Jerome Bettis.
Unfortunately, the crowd ended in complete disbelief and disappointment in the outcome.
The Steelers lost the toss to start with and had the ball to begin the game and with that came Michael Vick’s first chance to make an impression in Pittsburgh. His first offensive series fell flat but the Steelers defense backed him up forcing a three-and-out for the Ravens’ first offensive possession.
The Steelers’ second possession resulted in a 45-yard field goal from Josh Scobee. The Ravens then proceeded to march down the field in 12 plays for 75 yards taking over seven minutes resulting in a Michael Campanaro nine-yard touchdown run.
The Steelers got some life when Joe Flacco was intercepted by Ross Cockrell, who returned it 37 yards but the offense was unable to convert the turnover into any points. Lost opportunities became a theme throughout the night as it was clear in many instances that the offense and Vick weren’t always on the same page.
The Steelers first touchdown came on a Le’Veon Bell 11-yard run featuring a tremendous block by Vick. Vick would also later connect with Darrius Heyward-Bey for a 9-yard touchdown pass to put the Steelers up 20-7.
After that it seemed as though the Steelers offense couldn’t get anything going to save their own friggin lives. Vick was sacked four times and Josh Scobee missed two field goals, one of which would have won the game with a little over a minute on the clock.
The Ravens were able to overcome poor pass protection on Flacco as he was sacked five times, threw an interception, fumbled three times but lost only one. Ravens running back Justin Forsett ran all over the Steelers defense for 147 yards on 25 carries.
I do have to hand it to the Steelers defense for bailing this team out multiple times over the course of this game. Big plays by Ross Cockrell, Sean Spence, Stephon Tuitt and Lawrence Timmons all came through with plays that remind you of what a Steelers defense is supposed to look like.
Antonio Brown had a mostly quiet game until he had a 29-yard punt return in overtime to put the Steelers in position to try to score but they couldn’t get into Scobee’s range, which at this point would have to be roughly 3 yards for anyone to have any confidence in him.
Ravens kicker Justin Tucker connects on the 52-yard field goal to give the Ravens their first win of the season and Steelers fans more reason to hate them and Josh Scobee too.
Next: Steelers: Pressure on the defense
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