Steelers 31, Ravens 24: Pittsburgh Rallies From Behind To Win Another Instant Classic

In the first half of Sunday’s game, the Baltimore Ravens were forcing mistakes out of the Pittsburgh Steelers and making them pay for them. The second half couldn’t have been any more different for the Ravens, who dropped easy catches and gave away the ball throughout the third and fourth quarters. The Steelers made the most of it to come from behind and win in front of their Heinz Field faithful, 31-24.

Semi-blown coverage allowed Ben Roethlisberger to launch a deep throw in the fourth quarter and put his Steelers in position for the go-ahead touchdown. A dropped pass by Ravens receiver Anquan Boldin in the end zone was easily catchable. On the last meaningful play of the game, T.J. Houshmandzadeh dropped an easy Joe Flacco pass that would have kept his team alive. The team surrendered three second-half turnovers. It was a profound meltdown for Baltimore, who led 21-7 on the road at halftime.

Hours before Saturday’s AFC divisional playoff game between the Ravens and Steelers, it was announced that Steelers defensive end Aaron Smith has been ruled out with a triceps injury. Smith has not seen any action since Week 7.

Smith, one of the Steelers’ most valuable defensive assets, was not placed on injured reserve by the team, as coach Mike Tomlin held out hope that he would be able to contribute in the postseason. Earlier this week, Jason La Canfora cited a source that said Smith would not be able to return prior to the Super Bowl, should the Steelers get that far:

The rivalry between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, at this point, may be the fiercest and most dramatic in the NFL. The AFC North rivals hate one another, they boast two of the best defenses in the league, and in recent years, nearly every game has been decided by a single score.

Dating back to the 2008 season, here are the results from the last seven Ravens-Steelers games: