3 things we learned from Steelers win against the Baltimore Ravens

The Steelers played determined football to earn a win against the Baltimore Ravens. Here’s what we learned from the regular-season finale.

I really don’t know what to say about the Steelers performance against the Baltimore Ravens other than this:  We kept our slim playoff hopes alive by earning, and it was certainly earned, a victory against a tough and determined AFC North Division opponent.

It was certainly not our best game statistically speaking, but we did enough to secure victory and that’s all that matters.  True to form, the offense started slow but got it together when it mattered. The defense couldn’t stop the run but made plays when plays needed to be made.

With those two things in mind, let’s see what we learned from the win against the Ravens.

The Steelers offense is still a work in progress

Frankly, if we didn’t have Ben Roethlisberger as our QB, we may not have won this game.  The Steelers offense — true to form and as unfortunate as it is — got off to a slow start, yet again, scoring a whopping three points in the first half.

Somehow, someway, we were able to score enough points to win the game, but scoring sixteen points in a game that went to overtime is not a formula for sustained success.  According to ESPN, the Steelers offense gained a total of three hundred and fourteen yards.

While that is not terrible, what is terrible is the fact that we continue to not be able to run the ball with any consistency.  The offense managed to amass seventy-nine yards on the ground.  We averaged less than three yards per carry.

In order to have sustained and consistent success, you have to be able to run the ball and close a game out when it matters.  Again, we won the game and that’s all that matters, but these slow starts must end post-haste.

Let’s see what else we learned.