Here are five things to know about Pittsburgh’s 31-27 win.
1. Playoff picture
Pittsburgh clinched the AFC North and a home playoff game in the first round with a win.
Baltimore’s loss, meanwhile, put the Chiefs in the playoffs ahead of their Sunday night showdown with their own division rivals, the Broncos.
The Ravens’ own playoff hopes are officially kaput. The AFC’s No. 6 seed will now come down to the Broncos and the Dolphins.
2. Le’Veon Bell is a human joystick
Some things just aren’t fair. Like this:
.@l_bell26 just makes it look effortless. #BALvsPIT https://t.co/DWgK6kwEFN
— NFL (@NFL) December 25, 2016
Or this, where Bell made Brandon Williams — one of the NFL’s best run defenders — look ineffectual:
Nope.
Not gonna happen.
YOU CANNOT STOP @L_BELL26! #BALvsPIT https://t.co/JE0L0O4SiH
— NFL (@NFL) December 25, 2016
Or this, where he just made one cut and scooted away from everyone on the defense:
.@l_bell26 just makes it look effortless. #BALvsPIT https://t.co/DWgK6kwEFN
— NFL (@NFL) December 25, 2016
I’ve said this a few times throughout the season and I still believe it to be true: Bell almost never hits a hole at full speed, but it’s actually a good thing for him.
Most running backs that don’t hit the hole at full speed are hesitating and closing off gaps that are readily available. You don’t want those guys dancing around in the backfield. Bell, though, is actively seeking out a better running lane than the one immediately presented to him — and he almost always finds it. He’s just a marvelous player.
Bell’s final line: 122 yards on 20 carries, 15 more on three catches, and two total scores — one in the air and one on the ground. Yeah. He’s good.
3. A rare miscue
The Ravens have one of the NFL’s best kicking games. Coming into this game, they had the No. 6 rated special teams unit in the league, per Football Outsiders, and no team had added more points of field position via field goals and extra points.
Justin Tucker, of course, is the most accurate field goal kicker in NFL history. If you give him a chance to put one through the uprights, it’s almost a guarantee that he’s going to do it.
That’s why it was such a rarity to see the Ravens botch a field goal try. Holder Sam Koch couldn’t handle a high snap from long-snapper Morgan Cox, and the Ravens missed out on three points that it turned out they could have really used later in the game.
4. Standout defensive performances
It may not seem like it from the final score, but for most of the afternoon, this was a hard-fought defensive battle. Several defenders on both sides of the ball were all over the place and had ridiculous games.
For Pittsburgh, James Harrison, Lawrence Timmons, and Ryan Shazier all finished with double-digit tackles. Timmons had a huge sack prior to the muffed snap mentioned above. Sean Davis had a bunch of tackles, two passes defensed, and a tackle for loss.
Baltimore’s defense sprung some leaks in the fourth quarter, but kept the Steelers in check for most of the game. Zachary Orr was incredible in his run defense responsibilities in the first half and got the first pick on Big Ben. C.J. Mosley read Roethlisberger’s eyes and undercut a route on the second pick. Tavon Young, pass interference aside, was excellent for much of the day. These guys just ultimately didn’t have enough gas to keep the Steelers under wraps for a full 60 minutes.
5. Coming up short
The Ravens can look to their offense for a share of the blame as well. Baltimore reached Pittsburgh territory on all five first-half possessions, and reached the red zone twice, but came away with only six points. They did better with their red zone opportunities after halftime (three red zone drives, two touchdowns and a field goal), but the early struggles ultimately came back to haunt them.
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