MIKE BURKE
Allegany Communications Sports
Mike Tomlin is a very smart man, despite what some Pittsburgh Steelers fans might tell you on any given day, which I’ve never understood, but that’s not why we’re here today.
Late Sunday afternoon after his team’s 28-27 win over the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium in Landover, the Steelers head coach was asked about the similarities and the differences between Washington rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, as many have been quick all season to compare the two; Tomlin being among the few rather than the many.
“Man,” Tomlin said, “be real slow comparing people to Lamar Jackson. That’s a multi-time MVP. That’s Mr. Jackson. We’ll see Mr. Jackson in a few days.”
Yes, it’s Steelers-Ravens week, which resumes Sunday afternoon in Pittsburgh with the 7-2 Steelers currently holding a half-game lead over the 7-3 Ravens in the AFC North. Still likely the best and most heated rivalry in the NFL, the Steelers have thrown a little cold water on it of late by winning the last three meetings and seven of the last eight to take a 35-25 lead in the all-time series.
Still, Baltimore has opened the week as a surprising 3.5-point favorite.
As for the Steelers’ win over the Commanders, it was a great game, with the Steelers coming back to take the lead and then holding on as Daniels rallied the 7-3 Commanders late, only to come up short; and by short, we’re talking about a yard short on a very questionable spot on a fourth-down completion to tight end Zack Ertz that would have kept the drive going with a more responsible spot.
Not that it will do any good, but the Commanders did put in a call with the league on Monday, asking why the ball was spotted short on the play, according to head coach Dan Quinn.
But that’s NFL officiating (or whatever). Such as it is.
The Commanders just missed on what would have been their biggest win of this still-resurgent season, and they missed the services of a couple of key players who were out with injury, running back Brian Robinson Jr., who has missed the last two weeks with a hamstring injury, and who has missed two of the three Washington losses, and newly acquired cornerback Marshon Lattimore, a four-time All-Pro cornerback, who is also nursing a hamstring injury.
Lattimore, who was acquired last week from the New Orleans Saints, is a legitimate No. 1 corner in the league, and the Commanders trading for him shows they believe they can compete and win this year. They smell blood in the NFC, and they should.
The Steelers were on the mark on Sunday, but there is no way a healthy Lattimore would not have been a factor on Russell Wilson’s touchdown pass to George Pickens (which was a fantastic catch) or his go-ahead score late in the game to newly-acquired Mike Williams.
The Commanders don’t have time to wonder, though, because an even bigger game awaits them Thursday night in Philadelphia when they take on the 7-2 Eagles for first place in the NFC East.
The Eagles open as a 3.5-point favorite.
Meanwhile, the Ravens are coming off a thrilling 35-34 Thursday night win over the Cincinnati Bengals, and while Lamar Jackson continues to be incomparable (Mike Tomlin’s sentiment), the once-mighty Ravens defense was again torched to the tune of 425 passing yards by quarterback Joe Burrow and wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase.
The Ravens also added a cornerback last week in trading for the Los Angeles Rams’ Tre’Davious White, who did not play against the Bengals. White is no Lattimore, which is why the Ravens tried to acquire him first, but White has been an excellent corner in his career and provides experienced depth for the Ravens, who rank last in the NFL in pass defense and completions of 20 yards or more.
White is going to be needed Sunday because adding anything to this secondary must be considered an upgrade, beginning with a pass rush, which Baltimore has not had all season.
That’s why it was disappointing the Ravens were unable to bring back either Jadeveon Clowney, who the Carolina Panthers had made available, or ZaDarius Smith, who the Cleveland Browns traded to the Detroit Lions at the deadline.
On Monday, head coach John Harbaugh made clear the Ravens’ top priority.
“We gotta play our coverages better, especially in the deep middle and the intermediate middle part of the field. Those are the areas that have been a problem for us – very inconsistent back there. We’ll be attacking that. That’s probably the one major thing, if I was going to put a priority on it, and probably everybody would agree with that. That’s the No. 1 target that we have to get better at.”
Harbaugh is right to the point of being Captain Obvious, but so, it seems, would any other coach saying that about his team be just as correct and just as obvious; but then, that’s the way the NFL wants it.
The defense can’t touch a receiver in the first five yards off the ball, physical hits in the secondary are not allowed, the quarterback can’t be touched and in seemingly every NFL game, the middle of the field is constantly open.
Safety concerns are understandable, but can anyone honestly remember the last NFL rule that was made to benefit the defense? That’s why it all starts with the pass rush, and that’s why the Steelers are best made and equipped to deal with offense-friendly NFL rules. And you don’t think Patrick Queen is going to be all over the place against the team that let him walk?
The Ravens win by outscoring teams. Just can’t see them outscoring the Steelers.
Mike Burke writes about sports and other stuff for Allegany Communications. He began covering sports for the Prince George’s Sentinel in 1981 and joined the Cumberland Times-News sports staff in 1984, serving as sports editor for over 30 years. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on X @MikeBurkeMDT