Team Grades: Ravens Get Dismantled By Steelers In 43-23 Loss
By Samuel Njoku
The Ravens lost to a division opponent last week on the road. This week was more of the same as they fell to the Steelers 43-23 on Sunday night football. There’s plenty of blame to go around in this game.
Offense Grade: D
When the Ravens fall behind early, they completely abandon the pass. That’s their philosophy – and it’s a poor one. The Ravens started off hot with a quick strike to Torrey Smith early in the first quarter, after that it was pretty much downhill. A turnover by Lorenzo Taliaferro brought Pittsburgh back in it and the Ravens never really recuperated. Justin Forsett only had nine carries the entire game though he averaged a respectable 4.2 yards per carry. He also led the Ravens in catches with 5. That’s because the Ravens receivers were manhandled by the average secondary of Pittsburgh.
Baltimore’s offensive line struggled mightily against the Steelers. Most notably, LT Eugene Monroe will have nightmares of James Harrison for the rest of the season. He beat on Monroe pretty good and disrupted almost every play the Ravens thought of.
Defense Grade: F
I hope the Ravens don’t think they’ll win many games with that secondary. They were embarrassed out there by Antonio Brown who finished with 11 catches for 144 yards and a score. It doesn’t really matter who’s covering Brown, the results remained the same. The Ravens did a great job of creating pressure early on to mask their deficiencies in the secondary, but the Steelers adjusted and found a way to bye Big Ben time to make throws down the field. And he made a plethora of throws down field for the Steelers. It was an ugly performance by the defense. This one will sting for a while.
Quarterback Grade: C
Besides the awful interception thrown by Flacco early in the game, the Ravens QB didn’t play horrible. He threw the ball 45 times for 303 yards and 2 touchdowns. And he could have been a lot more efficient if he had some help from the offensive line. Joe was beat up by the Steelers front 7 and we constantly saw him run from pressure on nearly a play-by-play basis. But when you’re down big, and the opposing defenses are pinning their ears back, it’s tough to get the job done. Flacco needs to learn to be more careful with the football. As he learned once more against Pittsburgh, turnovers are unacceptable in the NFL.
Special Teams Grade: A
Jacoby Jones finally got his wish as he ran for a 108 yard touchdown. But the game ball goes to Sam Koch who kept the Ravens in it with his leg as he routinely pinned the Steelers back inside their 20. Great game by this unit.
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Samuel Njoku was born and raised in Baltimore, MD and is a graduate of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Samuel has covered the Ravens for Examiner.com since 2010. Prior to 2010, Samuel was an avid blogger and radio personality in Salisbury, MD. Samuel Njoku is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @Ravens_Examiner.