With the Ravens pulling into a tie for first place in the AFC North with a 34-17 victory over rival Pittsburgh on Saturday night, I’ve offered a dozen thoughts, each in 50 words or less:
1. Minkah Fitzpatrick’s interception was the “here we go again” moment as Baltimore led by only seven and had just moved inside the red zone. But Marlon Humphrey slammed the door two plays later with the Ravens’ first defensive touchdown of 2024 and the first pick six of his career. Cathartic.
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2. Also welcoming a newborn son this week, Humphrey leads the AFC with six interceptions and grades as PFF’s fourth-best cornerback. He forced critical turnovers in both Cincinnati nail-biters and had two first-half picks in the Buccaneers game the Ravens trailed early. Remember how this was a pivotal season for Humphrey?
3. Derrick Henry has been at his best on outside runs, but he ran between the tackles on a season-high 62.5% of his carries and had five of his seven explosive runs between the tackles, per Next Gen Stats. That was a statement performance by both Henry and the offensive line.
4. How incredible has Lamar Jackson been? On a night when he threw three touchdowns to set a new single-season franchise record (37) and finished with a 115.4 passer rating against a Pittsburgh defense that’s tormented him over the years, his 2024 season passer rating fell from 120.7 to 120.6. Ridiculous.
5. Baltimore was fortunate to recover first-quarter fumbles on Alex Highsmith’s strip-sack and on a punt return by Desmond King, who muffed another one late. But Russell Wilson’s second-quarter fumble inside the 5 was a game-altering miscue. Pittsburgh’s quarterback played well overall through three quarters, but those turnovers were absolute killers.
6. Zay Flowers became the 10th different Raven to go over 1,000 receiving yards in a season while Rashod Bateman caught his eighth touchdown to continue a career year. This is the best wide receiver duo the Ravens have had since Steve Smith and Torrey Smith a decade ago.
7. Kyle Van Noy arrived in Baltimore with 33 1/2 sacks over nine seasons. He now has 19 1/2 in 28 games as a Raven. Credit Eric DeCosta and the coaching staff for the vision to deploy Van Noy exclusively as an edge rusher. Not bad for a 33-year-old.
8. I can’t say I had Cordarrelle Patterson catching a highlight touchdown over Malik Harrison on my Ravens-Steelers bingo card. Despite all the doubts about Pittsburgh’s ability to move the ball without top receiver George Pickens, the Steelers averaged 6.2 yards per play through three quarters.
9. For all the grief John Harbaugh receives in some circles, the Ravens have now qualified for the postseason 12 times and reached double-digit wins 11 times in his 17 seasons. They’ve made the playoffs in six of the last seven campaigns, which matches their run from 2008-14. Not bad.
10. Speaking of great coaches, Mike Tomlin punting on fourth-and-12 at the 50 down 14 with under 10 minutes to go made little sense after Pittsburgh had previously tried a fourth-and-6 from the Baltimore 45 to open the fourth quarter. He made a similar decision to punt against Philadelphia last week.
11. Justice Hill’s concussion was a scary scene, but it was a relief seeing him be able to get up and walk to the locker room. You certainly wouldn’t anticipate him being available for the quick Christmas turnaround, but you hope for the best for an underrated part of this offense.
12. Yes, Pittsburgh was diminished by injuries on defense, but navigating the NFL’s annual war of attrition is a huge part of being successful. Health remains another reason why the Ravens could be very dangerous come January. Exorcising the demons against the Steelers was an important step in the right direction.
