Previous Steelers Loss Still Fresh in Ravens' Minds

The Baltimore Ravens look to avenge their loss to their arch rivals from just a few weeks ago.

Nov 17, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin (left) and Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (right) shake hands after the game at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Most of the AFC North divisional games this season take place in the second half of the schedule, creating an intense finish and even more animosity between the teams.

For example, the Baltimore Ravens host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday in a game that could decide the division champion outright, or at least go a long way toward doing so. The first matchup between these teams took place just over a month earlier, with the Steelers winning 18-16 at home to continue their dominance in the series.

Any loss to their arch rivals is going to sting, but with this one being so recent, it's still fresh in the Ravens' minds, for better or worse.

"We've had that before. I think we played Cleveland – we had one week in between last year maybe – it kind of happens in the division sometimes," head coach John Harbaugh told reporters Thursday. "These division games are pretty well ... We know these guys, they know us, but there are always wrinkles, we just try to have our guys ready to play. It's a big game. It's an important game. We're trying to focus on playing our best football really."

Harbaugh is actually thinking of the 2021 season, where the Ravens played the Browns twice in two weeks with a Steelers game sandwiched in between. They won the first Browns game, but dropped the second as Lamar Jackson suffered a season-ending injury and the Ravens closed the year on a six-game skid.

Of course, two games in six weeks against one opponent is very different from two games in three weeks, but the familiarity remains similar. With how much the Ravens shot themselves in the foot during that first game, they're eager to make up for that disappointing performance.

"There's a lot of things, no question about it," Harbaugh said. "I mean, there's different levels of things. There are the big-picture things – offense, defense [and] special teams – that we've talked to our guys about. Then there are details in every position room, in terms of things that we want to do better, but it's never the same game, either.

"There's going to be different things, different plays are going to be run on both sides – different schemes, so you take them as they come, going forward. And the idea that we can play good, winning football out there, and we've been doing that, for the most part, all season and continuing to improve in those things – that's what we're trying to do – and go play football, go play some ball."

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