Steelers stall Ravens' offense, lead North by 1.5

PITTSBURGH -- Two plays. That's all the Pittsburgh Steelers' defense needed to make a statement -- forcing and recovering a rare Derrick Henry fumble in Sunday's 18-16 victory against the Baltimore Ravens.

And as the clock wound down in the fourth quarter, Joey Porter Jr. slung quarterback Lamar Jackson out of bounds on what would've been a game-tying two-point conversion to put a final exclamation point on a complete defensive performance against the MVP front-runner and the league's highest-scoring offense.

"Going into the week, we knew how important this game was," Steelers defensive back DeShon Elliott said. "We knew how much talent they have on the team. I feel like we went out there -- other than a couple splash plays -- we played Steeler football."

With the Ravens (7-4) and Steelers (8-2) averaging at least 30 points entering Sunday's game, the latest iteration of the rivalry had all the makings of an offensive shootout -- at least on paper. But football isn't played on paper, and the end result on the turf at Acrisure Stadium was the byproduct of a gritty defensive performance by the Steelers to hold the Ravens to half of their typical output and take a 1.5-game lead in the division.

"A lot was written and said about that offense coming into this game, and rightfully so," coach Mike Tomlin said of the Ravens. "They got a lot of talent, they got a lot of weapons, they got good schematics. Our guys played hard and together, and man, I'm appreciative of that."

While Jackson and Henry each accounted for a score, neither was particularly effective in the loss. Jackson completed just 49% of his pass attempts Sunday, his lowest mark since 2021. He also had seven off-target passes, equaling the number of his off-target passes in the previous four games combined, according to ESPN Research.

Henry had 65 yards on 13 carries, marking the second time this season he's posted consecutive games with fewer than 100 rushing yards.

"We have to," Tomlin said of keeping Jackson and Henry in check. "These AFC North relationships are intimate ones, and we don't have a choice. You can't circumvent that challenge. You got to go through it, and thankfully today we did."

With the loss, Jackson fell to 1-4 against the Steelers. He's 17-5 against the rest of the AFC North.

"I can't call it," Jackson said of his team's struggles against the Steelers. "I can't call it. I feel like we were taking strides in the right direction, and then something would happen, but I can't call it."

Throwing under pressure, Jackson was sacked twice and completed just 2-of-10 attempts for 27 yards, marking his worst completion percentage on such throws all season. The Steelers defense also recorded six quarterback hits.

"Everybody was out there just doing their job, and it was nothing, no superhero plays," Steelers linebacker Elandon Roberts said. "It was more so, if you do your job, you're going to fall in the right spot."

In addition to Henry's first-drive fumble, the Steelers forced two more Ravens turnovers. Former Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen forced an Isaiah Likely fumble with less than 30 seconds until halftime, giving the Steelers enough time to add another Chris Boswell field goal.

Then, rookie linebacker Payton Wilson intercepted Jackson in the fourth quarter with textbook pass defense on running back Justice Hill.

"You don't know who it's going to be on a Sunday," Roberts said of the Steelers' ensemble cast. "We got a lot of weapons on the defense. You don't know who the guy may be that's going to make you say, 'Wow.' That's just the type of defense we have. We don't care who gets the wild play, we're all going to be there celebrating the same way. That's how we've been built all year."

Perhaps the wildest celebration of the afternoon came on Queen's fumble recovery against his former team. He ran to the end zone, stopping to pound his chest as he celebrated with his teammates and the frenetic Steelers fans.