Pittsburgh Review

The Pittsburgh Steelers' first encounter with the Baltimore Ravens in the 2024 season was a tightly contested match, culminating in a critical two-point conversion attempt. The game, held on November 17 at Acrisure Stadium, saw the Steelers narrowly maintaining their lead against the Ravens.

Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin made a strategic decision to call a timeout after Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson connected with wide receiver Zay Flowers for a 16-yard touchdown. This play brought Baltimore within two points of tying the game at 18-16, with just over a minute remaining in regulation.

Tomlin explained his decision: "I wanted to see what structure they were in." He opted to use one of his three timeouts before the two-point attempt, aiming to preserve the lead rather than prepare for an overtime scenario. The timeout was called just as the ball was about to be snapped, disrupting Jackson's initial move.

"Thankfully, we even saw some of the semblance of the schematics of what they intended to run," Tomlin said. "Obviously particularly Mr. (Lamar) Jackson is a little bit less dangerous when he is going to his left than his right."

The Ravens initially lined up with wide receivers Nelson Agholor and Tylan Wallace, tight end Mark Andrews, running back Justice Hill, and fullback Patrick Ricard. The Steelers countered with a nickel defense featuring safety Damontae Kazee as an additional defensive back.

After the timeout, both teams adjusted their lineups. The Ravens substituted tight end Isaiah Likely for Ricard while the Steelers switched to their base defense by replacing Kazee with defensive lineman Dean Lowry.

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh noted, "We have two-point plays called. We called one, they called timeout, we called the next one."

During the subsequent play, outside linebacker Nick Herbig disrupted Baltimore's blocking scheme but couldn't reach Jackson directly. Cornerback Joey Porter Jr., however, managed to tackle Jackson at Pittsburgh's 7-yard line before any pass could be completed.

Jackson confirmed post-game that it was meant to be a quarterback run: "They just stopped it. They did a good job."

Following this pivotal stop by Porter Jr., Pittsburgh successfully ran out the clock after forcing Baltimore to use its remaining timeouts. Inside linebacker Patrick Queen reflected on Porter's decisive play: "We don't have to do anything spectacular... Joey (Porter), who's usually the quiet one... gave everybody confidence."

The Steelers secured victory without needing further offensive plays beyond kneeling twice by quarterback Russell Wilson.