There are losses that are loud from the jump — the kind where you know by halftime your team doesn’t have it. Then there are losses like Ravens–Steelers in Week 18, where you spend three hours watching Baltimore look stuck in mud, watching Pittsburgh slowly drag the game into their kind of street fight… and still the Ravens end up with one clean shot to steal the division.

Fourteen seconds left. Ball already in field-goal range. Acrisure Stadium holding its breath like somebody just told them the rent’s due. Lamar Jackson takes a knee in the middle of the field. Tyler Loop trots out.

And then the kick — the one that was supposed to send Baltimore into the playoffs and slam the door on a frustrating, inconsistent season — hooks off to the right and dies in the cold Pittsburgh night.

Steelers 26. Ravens 24. AFC North champions in black and gold. The Ravens' season officially over.

The part that makes this one sting isn’t just “you missed the kick.” That’s the headline, sure. But the real gut punch is everything that led to it: Baltimore spent most of the night playing like a team that didn’t deserve to win… and still had the win sitting there. They struggled to sustain drives. They lived on a handful of explosives. They let the Steelers hang around forever. Then when it finally felt like Lamar pulled them out of the ditch — twice in the fourth quarter — they couldn’t finish the job.

Winner-Take-All Football Brings Out the Weird

The stakes were simple: win the game, win the AFC North, host a playoff game. Lose, and you’re watching January football from the couch, refreshing mock drafts and arguing about coaching decisions instead of playoff matchups.

It was also the kind of night where the little things outside the spotlight mattered more than usual. Pittsburgh wasn’t chasing fireworks early — it was a lot of backs, tight ends, and veteran route-runners, chipping away underneath, then turning around and trusting Chris Boswell to flip field position (and the scoreboard) with his leg.

And when the stakes get that high, football almost always turns a little weird.

You get coaches calling plays like they’re trying to outsmart the universe instead of just calling what works. You get players pressing — trying to make the play instead of a play. You get fanbases convincing themselves that fate has picked a side. You even get priests blessing the endzone with Holy Water before the game.

The First Drive Looked Like a Statement — Then the Offense Vanished

The opening drive was the kind of thing that gets you leaning forward on the couch if you're a Ravens fan.

First play: Derrick Henry rips off 47 yards. A grown man run.

Then the Ravens finish it with a shot play on fourth-and-3: Lamar hits Devontez Walker for a 38-yard touchdown, with Walker slipping out of a bunch and getting behind Steelers free safety Jalen Ramsey. It was clean. It was bold. It was the exact kind of “we came here to take your division” energy Baltimore needed.

The Steelers didn’t make Lamar uncomfortable at all on the play. If you give an elite athlete a clean pocket on a “gotta-have-it” down, he’s going to have time to let routes develop. Baltimore dialed up the perfect look, Lamar had the patience to wait it out, and the ball dropped right into that window behind the safety.

And if you’re a Ravens fan, you probably thought, Okay… that’s the formula. Henry early, Lamar on schedule, one or two explosives when Pittsburgh overcommits. We can live in that world.

Here’s the problem: they went into hibernation for nearly three quarters after that score.

After going 85 yards on that first drive, the Ravens' offense managed a measly 73 on their next six drives combined.

The numbers tell the story in a way that feels almost backwards: Henry had 112 rushing yards at halftime and finished with 126. That’s not a typo. Baltimore’s run game was productive early, and then it basically stopped being a real factor when it mattered most.

Some of that is Pittsburgh adjusting — more bodies in the box, better fits, more urgency on first contact. Some of that is game flow. And some of it is the Ravens just not leaning into the identity that was working.

In a game where you needed steadiness, Baltimore kept drifting back into explosive or bust.

Pittsburgh Didn’t Play Great — They Stayed Alive Just Long Enough

The Steelers deserve credit for what they did, because winning these games is literally their brand. But it’s also fair to say: Pittsburgh wasn’t lighting anyone up. They had their issues moving the ball through those first three quarters.

Late in the first half, Pittsburgh gets a gift: Kyle Hamilton gets hit with defensive pass interference on a throw to Pat Freiermuth in the end zone. Steelers ball at the Baltimore 1 with two seconds left.

This is supposed to be the easiest decision in football. Line up. Sneak it. Take the points, at minimum. At worst, you go to halftime down four instead of seven.

Instead, the Steelers call a misdirection pitch to Kenneth Gainwell — and the Ravens snuff it out for a loss.

They went into halftime down 10-3 and searching for answers

The “Big-Man Tush Push” and the Moment the Game Started Tilting

Coming out of halftime, Pittsburgh did the exact thing you can’t let them do in a game like this: they took your lead and made it feel flimsy. 

They open the second half with a 67-yard touchdown drive that felt slow, heavy, and inevitable. No tricks. No window dressing. The Steelers went straight into their “Spartan” look at the goal line — extra linemen, tight splits, bodies packed together — and dared Baltimore to stop them.

And the Ravens couldn’t.

Connor Heyward picks up a yard on fourth down. Then another yard to punch it into the endzone. Nothing flashy. Nothing that’s going to make a highlight reel. Just helmet-on-helmet football, with Cam Heyward literally shoving the pile from behind like he’s moving furniture.

And then, before Baltimore could even reset, the Steelers caught the exact kind of break that flips rivalry games.

Cameron Heyward gets a hand up. The ball pops straight into T.J. Watt’s arms at the Baltimore 26. A few plays later, Boswell knocks through a 25-yarder, and suddenly the Ravens find themselves chasing again — a feeling they've become used to this season.

The Moment the Middle of the Field Fell Apart

You don’t love blaming everything on one injury, because football is a team sport and games are messy. But it’s also just reality: the Ravens defense looked noticeably different after Kyle Hamilton went out. 

Hamilton left in the second half after a helmet-to-helmet collision with teammate Alohi Gilman and was ruled out with a concussion. Before that, he was everywhere — flying downhill, erasing mistakes, cleaning up plays that should’ve gone for more. Nine tackles doesn’t even fully capture it. He’s the kind of player who makes the middle of the field feel crowded and off-limits.

And when that presence disappears, quarterbacks notice.

The middle of the field — seams, in-breakers, those annoying five-yard checkdowns that somehow turn into first downs — started opening up. Pittsburgh leaned on Pat Freiermuth down the seam. Adam Thielen found space on crossing routes. Kenneth Gainwell started stacking catches underneath like he was collecting Pokémon.

None of it felt flashy. That’s the part that hurts the most. It was death by a thousand cuts — the kind of stuff Hamilton usually snuffs out before it ever becomes a problem. Without him, those small gains kept piling up, and Baltimore was fighting an uphill battle.

The Fourth Quarter Was Peak Ravens: Lamar Magic, Two Explosives… and Everything Else Falling Apart

For three quarters, Lamar’s stat line wasn't going to wow anyone. There were flashes, sure, but there weren’t those long, soul-crushing drives where you look up and realize six minutes just disappeared. Baltimore wasn’t controlling anything.

Then the game hit that unmistakable “season on the line” moment — and Lamar finally started looking like the guy everyone fears.

One Drive That Finally Looked Like an Offense

For most of the night, Baltimore’s offense felt like it was running on fumes — or hoping Lamar would bail it out with something unscripted. Nothing felt sustainable. Nothing felt repeatable.

Early in the fourth, though, with the Ravens still stuck at 10 points, they finally put together a drive that looked intentional instead of desperate. It wasn’t perfect, but it was controlled — and that alone felt like progress.

Lamar hit Zay Flowers on a quick throw to the left for 15, the kind of easy completion that had been missing all night. Then Derrick Henry grinds out 2, not much, but enough to keep things on schedule. Lamar keeps it himself up the middle for 4, something Ravens fans hadn't seen much of this year. And then the release valve finally pops: Jackson hits Flowers deep over the middle for a 50-yard touchdown.

It wasn’t just the score — it was how it happened. Clean pocket. Calm feet. A bad busted coverage in a single-high safety look allowed Flowers to get behind everyone, and Lamar didn't overthink it. Suddenly, it’s 17–13 Ravens, and for the first time since the first drive of the game, it felt like Baltimore had a pulse.

The Steelers Answer Like It’s Routine

Just as quickly, Pittsburgh reminded everyone why these games never feel safe.

The Steelers took the ball back and immediately turned it into Baltimore’s problem again — and the Ravens helped them do it. Loop kicks the kickoff out of bounds, and instead of forcing Pittsburgh to drive the length of the field, they start at the  40.

From there, it was textbook Steelers football.

• Jaylen Warren rips off 15 on the ground, immediately flipping field position.

• A false start pushes them back — and instead of spiraling, Rodgers calmly erases it with a 31-yard seam shot to Pat Freiermuth, dropping the ball right where only his tight end can get it.

• A couple short gains later, Kenneth Gainwell punches it in from the 2.

Just like that, the Ravens’ brief sense of control is gone. Steelers 20, Ravens 17.

The Play You Can’t Give Up… Happened Again

Baltimore wasn’t done ripping big chunks out of Pittsburgh’s secondary — but it wasn’t some wild trick play.

Down 20–17 with under four minutes left, the Ravens went back to the bunch look that had been giving the Steelers' secondary fits, particularly against a single-high safety. Zay Flowers snuck loose after a fake to Derrick Henry and found himself in the endzone again.

Three plays, 73 yards, and suddenly it’s 24–20 Ravens with 2:20 left. Two Flowers touchdowns in the quarter. Two backbreakers.

And yet… it still didn’t feel safe.

The Steelers got the ball back, and you could almost feel the inevitability setting in.

The Final 80 Seconds Was Pure Cinema

If you want the cleanest summary of Baltimore’s season, it might be this:

They found themselves needing one last stop.

And they couldn’t get it.

Rodgers Finds the One Mistake You Can’t Make

Pittsburgh was driving, but found themselves staring at a third-and-10 from the 26 yard line. Aaron Rodgers drops back, sees Chidobe Awuzie lose his footing for just a split second, and doesn’t hesitate. Calvin Austin III breaks free, Rodgers lets it rip, and suddenly a drive that was hanging on by a thread turns into a 26-yard touchdown.

That’s the nightmare scenario. Not a perfectly drawn-up play that beats flawless coverage — just one small slip and a veteran quarterback who has spent two decades punishing exactly that kind of mistake.

Pittsburgh's celebrating didn't last for long.

Boswell lines up for what feels like a formality. He hadn’t missed an extra point in eight years. This is the kind of kick you barely watch.

Except it doesn’t go through.

Now the Steelers lead 26–24, not 27–24, and all Baltimore needs is a field goal to steal the AFC North.

Keaton Mitchell Gives Them a Head Start

The kickoff return matters. Keaton Mitchell brings it back 42 yards and Baltimore starts at its own 48. That’s been one of the massive benefits of the new kickoff; field position at the end of games isn't always a given anymore.

And then the drive immediately gets tense.

A near-sack. A fourth-and-7. Twenty-one seconds left.

A Likely Catch and an Unlikely Miss

With the season on the line, Lamar escapes, buys time, and fires a 26-yard completion to Isaiah Likely.

And suddenly, against all logic and despite everything that had gone wrong earlier, Baltimore is standing at the Pittsburgh 24 with 14 seconds left.

That’s a dream setup — especially considering how ugly the Ravens offense had looked for most of the night.

Lamar takes a knee to center the ball, and now the Ravens are 44-yard field goalaway from the postseason.

Mike Tirico did an excellent job of setting it up on the broadcast, mentioning what they had for so long in Tucker, and went on to say, "They went around the country and spoke to a lot of the kickers who were coming out, and they decided that Tyler Loop was made of the right stuff for moments like this."

And for a split second, you almost believed it.

Then the kick drifts wide right.

Acrisure Stadium explodes. Towels spin. The Steelers' sideline spills onto the field. And just like that, a Ravens season that had somehow clawed its way to one final chance ends not with a miracle — but with silence.

The Kneel Question: Was It the Right Choice?

You have Derrick Henry — the best "we need positive yards, no matter what" back in the league — standing right there. That’s the part that’s hard to shake. With 14 seconds left and a timeout in your pocket, it’s fair to wonder why there wasn’t even a real discussion about putting the ball in his hands one more time.

This is exactly the kind of situation Henry was built for. Not just because he can fall forward and guarantee you a couple yards, but because every once in a while, he breaks one. And if that happens, you’re not relying on a rookie kicker at all — you’re celebrating and running off the field.

The Ravens’ Biggest Problem Wasn’t the Miss — It Was How They Got There

It’s too easy to make this about the kicker.

The more honest version is this:

Baltimore didn’t play like a division champ for most of the season, and hardly any of this game.

They played like a team that needed miracles — and then got just enough miracles to make the ending hurt.

1) The Offense Was Still Too Dependent on Chaos

Lamar finished with 238 passing yards and three touchdowns, and if you only read that line you’d assume Baltimore’s offense was humming.

It wasn’t.

Two of the touchdowns were chunk plays to Flowers where Pittsburgh completely busted coverages. Another was the early fourth-down shot to Walker.

Outside of those moments? The Ravens were stuck. They went long stretches without converting third downs. They weren’t stacking drives. And once Henry’s early rhythm faded, the offense didn’t have a reliable identity to fall back on.

2) The Second-Half Run Game Fell Off a Cliff

Henry finishing with 126 and having 112 at halftime is wild. Pittsburgh turned him into a non-factor after the break, and Baltimore never found the counterpunch.

Some of that is game script. Some of it is defensive adjustments. Some of it is Baltimore not forcing the issue.

But if you’re Baltimore, the whole point of having Henry is to have something sturdy when the game gets tight. When your passing game is uneven. When the weather is cold. When the opponent is trying to turn the game into a street fight.

And in this one, the sturdy part disappeared.

3) Losing Kyle Hamilton Was a Backbreaker

The Ravens defense after Hamilton left looked like a shell of itself. Rodgers started hitting the seams and the underneath stuff more consistently. Third-and-long became survivable for Pittsburgh instead of scary.

4) The Ravens Never Got the One Stop That Would’ve Defined Their Season

Baltimore had the lead twice in the fourth quarter.

All they needed was one stop.

Instead, Rodgers goes and gets a deep touchdown on third-and-10. That's the kind of play that ends seasons.

Congrats Steelers, Now You Get the No. 1 Defense at Home in the Playoffs

As great of a win as this is for the Steelers as a whole, it’s fair to wonder if it’s also just delaying the inevitable by a week. They earned the division, they earned the home playoff game — and now they get rewarded with a date against the league’s best defense by just about any metric you want to pull up.

Aaron Rodgers has made a living this season getting the ball out of his hands quickly, staying on schedule, and avoiding the kinds of mistakes that bury you early. The problem is, the Texans aren’t a defense that gives you easy answers. They’re fast at every level, disciplined on the back end, and comfortable bringing pressure with four or five while still playing sound coverage behind it. Those quick, easy windows Rodgers has been living on? They’re going to be tighter, if they’re there at all.

Getting DK Metcalf back after serving his two-game suspension will help — it always helps to have a receiver who can tilt coverage just by stepping onto the field. But even that comes with an asterisk. If Metcalf spends most of the night lined up across from Derek Stingley, it’s not exactly a mismatch you’re circling with confidence. Stingley is the kind of corner who can survive on an island, which means the Texans can keep everything else in front of them and make Pittsburgh grind for every yard.

That doesn’t mean the Steelers can’t make it interesting — they’ve made a habit of dragging teams into uncomfortable games all season. But this matchup is a different animal.

For now, though, Pittsburgh can at least enjoy what they just pulled off. They won the North. They survived the chaos. And as Mike Tomlin once put it, “We love being in the kitchen. And AFC North ball is in the kitchen. It’s hot in the North.” 

All stats courtesy of NFL Pro.