Brown’s Five Thoughts on Ravens Being Unable to Solve Steelers

When it comes to defending Jackson, it’s almost like the Steelers have a cheat code that they won’t share with anyone else.

Failing to complete 50% of his passes (16-of-33, 207 yards, one touchdown, one interception, 46 yards rushing) Jackson felt the wrath of Pittsburgh’s defense all day. He had balls batted down at the line of scrimmage, he was sacked twice and pressured often, and he could not create enough positive plays, even when escaping the pocket. He only completed five passes to wide receivers and the offense looked disjointed much of the game.

Meanwhile, the turnovers didn’t help, and the Steelers were the aggressors on defense. Former Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen (10 tackles) made a huge strip just before halftime that led to a Pittsburgh field goal. Pittsburgh linebacker Peyton Wilson outfought Justice Hill for the ball to make an interception in the second half, and linebacker Nick Herbig set the tone by forcing Derrick Henry to fumble on the game’s second play.

Jackson’s brilliant play has saved the Ravens at times this year, but the Steelers didn’t allow that to happen. In his previous eight games, Jackson had a passer rating of 100+ and was the NFL’s best player over that stretch. In this game, Jackson’s passer rating was 66.1, and in his five career starts against Pittsburgh, Jackson has 11 turnovers and has taken 22 sacks.

With the league’s No. 1 offense and more weapons than Jackson has ever had against Pittsburgh, the Ravens thought their offense would shine. It didn’t. That will force the Ravens’ players and coaches to keep looking for answers before their rematch against Pittsburgh in Week 16.

“We’ve got to put more points on the board,” Jackson said. “This environment, knowing it’s a division game that’s still a Raven rivalry. It’s the one who has more possessions of the ball and keeping it safe, and we didn’t do a good job of that.”