The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens hate one another, and that’s not an exaggeration.
In the AFC North where there is no love lost between all the opponents in the division, the Steelers and Ravens have taken the rivalry to the next level over the years.
With Baltimore needing a victory over Pittsburgh to compete for the AFC title on Saturday, the recent results between the two squads don’t bode well for the (8-5) Ravens, who need a victory to keep their chances of winning the division alive.
If the Steelers win, they clinch the AFC North and the Ravens will be forced to get into the playoffs with one of the wildcard spots, which would mean a much harder path to reaching the Super Bowl.
The Steelers enter the matchup leading the series (36-25), including the playoffs. But even more concerning for the Baltimore Ravens ahead of Saturday is the Steelers’ recent dominance in the rivalry games. Pittsburgh has won eight of the last nine games, all by seven points or fewer.
The Ravens last victory came in 2022 at Pittsburgh when Baltimore prevailed, 16-14, without an injured Lamar Jackson, who has a 1-4 career record against Pittsburgh as a starter. In Week 11, the Steelers didn't score a touchdown but squeezed out an 18-16 victory behind Chris Boswell's six field goals.
But for the last several weeks, the Steelers offense have found a groove on offense to match with their stifling defense. Starting QB Russell Wilson is playing as well as he did early in his career, with QB ratings of 116.7, 126.4, 101.1 and 94.5 over the last four games. He’s thrown seven touchdowns and just one interception over that span.
On Friday as the Steelers boarded the plane to Baltimore, Wilson took the ultimate jab at the Ravens, by sporting a camouflage Steelers jacket, implying he’s about to hunt for birds (the mascot of his rival).
Check out the outfit clearly meant to troll the Ravens right here.
Wilson just added fuel to an already smoldering fire.
