Matt's Stats: Week 18 vs. Ravens

SERIES HISTORY

This outstanding rivalry started in 1996 when the Ravens joined the NFL. Since then, Pittsburgh leads the series 37-27, including the five playoff matchups. The most recent meeting was Week 14, with the Steelers winning in Baltimore. Pittsburgh won six of the first seven regular season meetings. The Steelers have also won nine of the last 12 games and four of their last five at home. Mike Tomlin is now 23-18 against the Ravens. John Harbaugh is 17-22 against Pittsburgh. Tomlin and Harbaugh's 39 meetings are the second most between head coaches all time.

MATCHUP OVERVIEW

• The Steelers are 4-3 at Acrisure Stadium this year. Baltimore is 3-2 in the AFC North and 5-2 on the road. Pittsburgh is also now 3-2 within the division.
• Pittsburgh is 20-5 in regular season finales since 2000 (11-1 at home). They are also 10-1 in regular season finales at home vs. divisional opponents since 2000.
• Baltimore is now 2-0 with Tyler Huntley as their starting quarterback. Previously, Baltimore had lost five straight non-Lamar Jackson starts dating back to 2022.
• The Steelers have outscored their opponents 8 points this season. Baltimore's scoring differential is +28.
• Baltimore has a turnover differential of -2 compared to +11 for the Steelers. Pittsburgh has 26 takeaways. Baltimore has 21. But the Ravens have turned the ball over 22 times compared to 15 by Pittsburgh. Only the Vikings (13) have more takeaways via fumble than Pittsburgh (12). Only Seattle (13) has lost more fumbles than Baltimore (12).
• Pittsburgh has 98 points off of turnovers, only behind Chicago and Jacksonville.
• The Ravens held the ball for 40:16 last week. For the season, they sit at 29:23 compared to 28:03 for Pittsburgh. In the first meeting, Baltimore possessed the ball for 33:44. Over the past three weeks, Pittsburgh averages 32:46.
• Baltimore has a -14-sack differential compared to +14 for the Steelers.
• Baltimore's offense is blitzed on 37.7% of their dropbacks, the highest rate in the league. The Steelers offense is blitzed at a 21.9% rate.
• The Ravens opponents have thrown for 1,162 more passing yards than Baltimore, but the Ravens have rushed for 812 more yards than they have allowed.
• Pittsburgh's opponents have 63 more first downs, 990 more total yards, 774 more passing yards, and have run 149 more offensive plays than the Steelers.
• The Ravens average 5.73 plays per drive. Pittsburgh averages 5.86.
• In terms of punts forced per drive, Baltimore is better than only three defenses. Pittsburgh is better than only five.
• In terms of three and outs per drive, the Steelers and Ravens are both only better than four defenses.
• The Steelers defense allows the second most plays per drive. Baltimore allows the sixth most.
• Baltimore's defense starts with the league's fourth worst average starting field position. Pittsburgh's defense starts with the league's second best.
• The Ravens ran 26 more plays than Pittsburgh in the first meeting.
• Pittsburgh is only better than five teams in yards per drive differential (-4.88).
• Only four teams are better than the Steelers in punts per drive differential.
• Baltimore (50.8%) is fifth best in red zone defense. Pittsburgh (50.9%) is sixth best.
• Pittsburgh's offense uses play action at a 13.1% rate. Baltimore is at 13.6%.
• The three highest percentage of multi tight end rates are Baltimore (51.9%), Cleveland (51.6%), and Pittsburgh (50.3%).
• The Ravens have an average margin of victory of 16.1 points, third highest.
• Pittsburgh's defense has faced 667 dropbacks, tied with Jacksonville for most in the league. Baltimore has faced 644, sixth most.
• The Steelers allow 262.4 passing yards per game. Baltimore allows 256.8. That is third and fifth most.
• Baltimore has 90 accepted penalties. Pittsburgh has 96. That is fifth and 10^th fewest.
• Pittsburgh has led at halftime in 11 games this season, tied for second most. The Steelers have lost four games after leading at halftime.

WHEN PITTSBURGH HAS THE BALL

• The Steelers averaged 4.5 last week. Baltimore allowed 8.2 yards per play in Green Bay. In the first meeting, Pittsburgh averaged 6.2 yards per play.
• Pittsburgh is throwing the ball on 58.1% of their snaps, 10^th highest.
• The Steelers offensive personnel rates: 11 Personnel 37.6% (31^st), 12 Personnel 26.2% (12^th), 13 Personnel 15.3% (2^nd). The Steelers utilize an extra offensive lineman on the field for 17.5% of their snaps.
• Baltimore utilizes five or more defensive backs for 88% of their snaps. Only Seattle is higher.
• Against the Browns, Pittsburgh went empty on 33.8% of their offensive snaps, the highest by any team in a game this season. The week before in Detroit, they went empty at a 32.9% clip, second among any team this season.
• Pittsburgh turns a set of downs into a new set of downs or a touchdown at a 70% rate, better than eight offenses. Baltimore's defense is at 71%, league average.
• The Steelers average depth of target is just 5.9 yards downfield. That is lowest in the league. 86% of Rodgers' passes have been 15 air yards or shorter downfield.
• A total of 66.8% of Pittsburgh's passing yards have come after the catch. Not only is that the highest percentage in the league, but second is Miami at 56.4%. 43.8% of the passing yardage allowed by Baltimore has come after the catch. Only five defenses are lower.
• Aaron Rodgers threw for 168 yards on 39 pass attempts last week. He was 8 for 21 for 60 yards when targeting wide receivers in that game.
• Without DK Metcalf in the equation, when the Steelers were in 12 Personnel last week, Adam Thielen and Marquez Valdez Scantling played 100% of those snaps. Scotty Miller played in 100% of the 11 Personnel snaps. Roman Wilson was only involved in 13 Personnel.
• Rodgers has 67 pass attempts with Metcalf off the field. He completed 56.7% of those passes while averaging 4.7 yards per attempt. Rodgers averages 2.4 more passing yards per attempt when Metcalf is on the field.
• Metcalf (850) is still responsible for 25.5% of Pittsburgh's receiving yards. In these teams' first meeting, Metcalf was targeted 12 times, catching seven passes for 148 yards.
• Kenneth Gainwell has run 113 routes from non-backfield alignments, tied for second most among running backs. Only Bijan Robinson and Christian McCaffrey have more receiving yards from such alignments.
• Baltimore allows 9.0 yards per target to pass catchers aligned in the slot. That is only better than the Commanders, Titans, and Bears.
• The Ravens give up the fourth most receiving yards to running backs (39.9 per game).
• The Ravens only had one sack last week. Travis Jones leads Baltimore with four sacks. Rodgers wasn't sacked in the teams' first meeting. Only the 49ers (18) and Jets (26) have fewer sacks than Baltimore (28). Only the 49ers (3.0%) have a lower sack percentage than the Ravens (4.3%). Baltimore and San Francisco are the only teams that don't have a player with five or more sacks.
• Pittsburgh's 2.23 average rushing yards after first contact is sixth best.
• The Steelers average 4.5 yards per carry with an extra offensive lineman on the field.
• Pittsburgh rushed for 131 yards in Cleveland.
• Jaylen Warren (892) and Kenneth Gainwell (527) are responsible for 86% of the Steelers rushing yards.
• Pittsburgh converted just three third down attempts in 15 tries last week and were unsuccessful on all three fourth down attempts.
• Since Week 6, the Ravens rank second in third down defense and first in red zone defense.
• The Ravens have a 7.1% explosive play rate allowed. Pittsburgh's offense produces an explosive play at a 5.2% clip, better than only eight offenses.
• Since joining the NFL in 2022, Kyle Hamilton is one of four players to log over 300 snaps aligned at the line of scrimmage (334), at linebacker (763), at cornerback (1,062), and at safety (1,171). Since trading for Alohi Gilman in Week 5, Hamilton has aligned at safety for just 2.9% of his snaps. When aligned at linebacker this season, the Ravens allow just 3.6 yards per carry.

WHEN BALTIMORE HAS THE BALL

• The Ravens averaged 5.6 yards per play last week. Pittsburgh allowed 5.2 in Cleveland. In the first meeting, Baltimore averaged 5.5 yards per play.
• Baltimore is throwing the ball just 48.1% of their snaps, lowest in the league. They are the only team under 50%. Baltimore threw the ball just 34.5% of the time last week.
• The Ravens offensive personnel rates: 11 Personnel 30.6% (32^nd), 12 Personnel 36.1% (3^rd), 13 Personnel 5.6% (12^th), 21 Personnel 17.2% (3^rd), 22 Personnel 8.6% (4^th). Baltimore has multiple running backs on the field more than every offense but four.
• The Steelers allow 35.7 yards per drive, fifth highest.
• Baltimore turns a set of downs into a new set of downs or a touchdown at a 73% rate. Only nine offenses are better. The Steelers defense is also at 73%, better than only 10 defenses.
• Baltimore produces 190.0 passing yards per game, fourth lowest.
• The Steelers have allowed the most completions (385) in the league.
• Pittsburgh faces an average depth of target of 7.2 yards. Only three defenses are lower, and no defense sees a lower percentage of deep passes (6.9%).
• Only the Seahawks (2.48) face a lower time to throw than Pittsburgh's defense (2.53).
• Tyler Huntley threw for just 107 yards in Green Bay in a winning effort. No Ravens pass catcher had more than 30 receiving yards.
• The Ravens have averaged 35.5 points per game with Huntley as the starter (highest of any quarterback) compared to 26.3 with Jackson starting.
• Huntley has an average time to throw of 2.56 seconds, quickest among qualified quarterbacks. Jackson's average time to throw is 2.99 seconds, fourth highest.
• Jackson has four passing touchdowns against five interceptions since Week 10.
• Zay Flowers has 665 more receiving yards than any other Ravens pass catcher. He caught eight passes for 124 yards against Pittsburgh earlier in the season. That was his most catches in any game this season and his second most yards. There have only been two games this season that Flowers wasn't Baltimore's leading receiver, both Ravens losses. Flowers has scored in three straight games after a 12-game scoreless drought.
• When the Ravens had one wide receiver on the field last week, that responsibility fell to Devontez Walker 16 of those 23 snaps.
• Mark Andrews has failed to reach 28 yards in four straight games.
• Pittsburgh gives up third most receiving yards (67.2) and second most receptions per game (6.4) to tight ends.
• Pittsburgh allows 7.8 yards per target to pass catchers aligned on the outside. Only four defenses are better. But they allow 8.7 yards per target to those aligned in the slot, better than only seven defenses.
• The Steelers have 15 players with at least one sack.
• The Ravens take a sack on 8.7% of dropbacks, sixth highest. Huntley was only sacked once last week.
• Only the Broncos (142) have more than the Steelers 103 quarterback hits.
• The Steelers blitz six more defenders 10.5% of opposing dropbacks. Only the Vikings, Chiefs, and Buccaneers are higher.
• Pittsburgh's 21 batted passes lead the league.
• The Ravens 2,525 rushing yards are more than any offense in the NFL. Their 5.26 yards per carry also leads the NFL. They are the only team over 4.97 yards per carry. Baltimore's explosive run rate of 7.1% is only behind the Dolphins. The Ravens average 2.84 rushing yards before first contact. Not only is that best in the league, but next best is the Rams at 2.46.
• Derrick Henry carried the ball 36 times (a career high) in Green Bay and racked up 216 yards on the ground and four touchdowns. Baltimore finished that game with 307 rushing yards on 53 attempts. Henry played 63.2% of the snaps in that game, his highest since Week 10. He also played 40% of the third down snaps, his highest of the season.
• Henry has 1,129 more rushing yards than any other Raven to go along with 16 rushing touchdowns. Last week was his seventh career game with 200+ rushing yards, the most in NFL history. Only Jonathan Taylor (18) has more than Henry's 16 rushing touchdowns. Only James Cook (1606) and Taylor (1559) have more than Henry's 1,469 rushing yards. Henry has 1,115 rushing yards after contact, behind only Taylor. Henry is the only player in NFL history to average over 100 rushing yards per game (103.8) in December and January. Henry averages 8.1 more carries per game in contests Jackson doesn't start this season.
• Pittsburgh allowed just 78 rushing yards in Cleveland, but the Ravens rushed for 217 yards in these teams' first meeting.
• Baltimore had 22 rushing first downs last week.
• In these teams' first meeting, on runs to T.J. Watt's side of the field, the Ravens gained just 31 yards on 11 carries (2.8 average). On the 18 runs to the opposite side of Watt, Baltimore gained 125 yards on 18 rushes (6.9 average).
• Pittsburgh has only surrendered 10 rushing touchdowns. Only the Rams and Seahawks are better.
• The Steelers have allowed just 171 rushing yards off quarterback scrambles this season, third fewest.
• The Ravens were 10 of 14 on third downs in Week 17.
• The Steelers allow a fourth down conversion rate of 72.2%.
• Baltimore's red zone conversion rate of 47.5% is better than only the Saints, Jets, and Texans.
• The Ravens have an explosive play rate of 6.7%. Only five offenses are better.

SPECIAL TEAMS

• The Steelers average kickoff return goes for 23.9 yards.
• Pittsburgh has made 25 field goals, more than just 11 teams.
• The Ravens have a net punting average of 47.3 yards, best in the league.

MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT

January 18^th, 2009: AFC Championship: Steelers 23, Ravens 14, Heinz Field

This was possibly the most violent and physical game ever played between these two franchises-and that is saying something. This was the second ever playoff meeting between these wo teams in what was John Harbaugh's first year as the Ravens head coach. Pittsburgh got out to an early 13-0 lead at home, but then two great defenses took over. About midway through the second half, Baltimore clawed their way back to make this a 16-14 game. In the end, Troy Polamalu intercepted Joe Flacco and returned it for a touchdown to seal a Pittsburgh Super Bowl appearance. Pittsburgh forced five fumbles in this game including three in the final 3:13 of play. The Steelers then went on to win Super Bowl XLIII over Arizona.

KEY MATCHUPS

Ravens LT Ronald Stanley vs. Steelers Edge Alex Highsmith - Highsmith is playing at an extremely high level. The Steelers often have a high blitz percentage when playing the Ravens, the offense in the NFL that sees the highest percentage of blitz. But if Highsmith consistently wins against Stanley, that might be a tactic that the Steelers won't need to employ a great deal.

Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers vs. Ravens Safety Kyle Hamilton - Hamilton spends most of his time near the line of scrimmage but that doesn't mean unveiling his assignment is an easy endeavor. Baltimore uses their star safety in an exceptionally wide variety of ways. It will fall on the extremely experienced Rodgers to decipher Hamilton's intentions.