Four takeaways from the Ravens' 28-24 loss to the Steelers originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
The Ravens, for a while, looked like they'd run the Steelers off the field at M&T Bank Stadium.
But mistakes killed the offensive momentum and the Steelers' offense woke up, as the Ravens dropped a heartbreaker 28-24 to their division rivals at home. It came down to the final play, as Lamar Jackson's pass to Willie Snead in the end zone fell incomplete.
The Steelers remained unbeaten with the win and the Ravens dropped their second game of the season with the loss.
Here are four takeaways from the heart-stopping game that included a bit of everything:
1. Ronnie Stanley’s ankle
Win or lose, the second Ronnie Stanley was loaded onto the cart at midfield with an air cast over his left ankle, the story for the future of the Ravens’ season immediately shifted.
With Stanley out, the Ravens moved Orlando Brown Jr. from right tackle to left tackle and put D.J. Fluker at right tackle. The move was made in a pinch, especially with Tyre Phillps out for the game with an ankle injury as well.
With just a handful of days before the trade deadline, one of the Ravens’ biggest needs now appears to be at tackle on the offensive line — especially if Stanley’s injury turns out to be as bad as it looked as he hit the turf in agony.
Stanley just signed a five-year contract extension in the days leading up to the game. Now, his status for the rest of the season as a reigning All-Pro tackle is up in the air and looks bleak.
2. Judon ejected
Matthew Judon was ejected in the second quarter for making contact with an official, though it was deliberate on Judon’s part.
While in a scrum, a member of the Ravens’ sideline held Judon back from the dust-up between cornerback Marcus Peters and Steelers wideout Diontae Johnson. As Judon tried to break loose, his arm came free and hit an official in the arm. He was immediately ejected for making contact with the referee.
The Ravens’ pass rush, which had just added Yannick Ngakoue to the mix, was suddenly without their leading pass-rusher from a year ago.
He’ll be back for next week against the Colts, but his absence was certainly one that affected the Ravens.
3. Lamar’s mistakes
Now, after all that, it’s time for in-game stories.
Lamar Jackson cost the Ravens time and time again with interceptions and a sack-fumble inside the Steelers’ 10-yard line. Even a few breaks went their way, as an interception was overturned by replay review and a Mark Andrews fumble rolled out of bounds before the Steelers could jump on it.
The Ravens jumped ahead 17-7 after some early mistakes, but certainly could have led 21-0 or 24-0 at the break were it not for killer mistakes.
He made his usual electrifying plays, which helped the Ravens re-take the lead late, but his mistakes certainly need to be cleaned up as they allowed the Steelers to hang around longer than they should have.
4. Run game excels
If there was a silver lining from the Ravens’ offensive performance, it was the run game.
Absent Mark Ingram due to an ankle injury, Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins handled the load impressively. As a team, the Ravens ran for 265 yards on 47 total carries. Dobbins led the way in carries with 15 for 113 yards.
It was a mighty impressive day for the Ravens on the ground, even without Ingram in the mix.
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