You better believe Patrick Queen had this contest circled on his calendar. The former Baltimore Ravens linebacker is coming off a Pro Bowl season but wasn't even offered a contract before hitting free agency in 2024 and signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After getting acclimated to his new teammates in Pittsburgh, Queen looked to seek revenge against his former team... and did he ever.
Shortly after the Ravens scored a touchdown before the half, the Steelers went three-and-out -- giving Baltimore one last chance to capitalize before going into the tunnel. But Queen quickly put an end to that. On a Ravens screen pass to Isaiah Likely, Queen ripped the ball out of Likely's hands. It bounced into the air, through the hands of Cam Heyward, and was recovered by Queen.
BIG PLAY PQ‼️ @Patrickqueen_
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 17, 2024
📲 Stream on NFL+: https://t.co/COxKRnr6Mc pic.twitter.com/7Nyt40chKD
With Pittsburgh's offense struggling and the Ravens starting to gain all the momentum, this is exactly what the Steelers needed heading into the tunnel. Pittsburgh's fumble recovery in their own territory resulted in a field goal before the half -- giving the Steelers a 9-7 lead at halftime.
Patrick Queen is having a career game vs. Ravens
You could tell all week that Patrick Queen was gearing up for the game of his life. While all eyes were on Diontae Johnson's revenge game against the Steelers, I wrote about how Queen had more reason for vendetta against his former team.
In the first half, Queen led the team with seven tackles, a tackle for a loss, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. He's on pace for career numbers in one of the biggest regular-season games of his career.
This is the climax of the season for the Pittsburgh Steelers who could go up a game-and-a-half over the Ravens while owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over their biggest AFC North Rival. Patrick Queen is determined to make sure he's a part of it.
It's great to see Queen have such a remarkable homecoming against his former team. This game has been chippy, and we don't expect that to stop anytime soon.