Steelers and Ravens rivalry is something special
by Bo Marchionte
Twitter @BoMarchionte
“It Takes Two” by Rob Base and D.J. E-Z Rock is the best way to describe the rivalry that exists between Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Any great rivalry must have superior teams, that coincide with legendary players, stirring the deepest emotions of love and hate.
With so much division in our society, the idea to embellish and relish in the beauty of what these two teams have accomplished over the years, just felt right.
Do these teams like each other – No!
Are they made for one another to be their best – Absolutely!
It is widely considered one of the best rivalries in the National Football League. These games are the pinnacle of physicality and intensity. The winning traditions of both franchises almost always have ramifications of division titles and first round byes.
Pittsburgh leads the all-time series 25-23.
Those wins have been earned by each franchise with names like Ben Roethlisberger, Ray Lewis, Troy Polamalu, Jonathan Ogden, Hines Ward, Ed Reed, and many other NFL greats that reside in this rivalry’s stellar history.
The well chronicled history amongst these two teams resonates to the new faces on each roster. Second-year receiver Diontae Johnson said he could “tell by the energy” of the veterans it was Ravens week.
“Everybody is focused this week,” Johnson said.
“I am seeing that around them (veterans). That is wearing off on me. So, that is helping me lock in and get ready because it is a big week for us. AFC North football. Top dogs of the conference in my opinion. So, we going to put on a show this weekend.”
These two franchises have won 14 of the 18 division crowns since the inception of the AFC North in 2002. Pittsburgh winning eight with the Ravens trailing behind by two with six of their own.
“You know what the Ravens games are about,” Mike Tomlin said during his weekly appearance with local media. “They are a top-notch organization and football team. They got talent across the board.”
Roethlisberger remains, but newcomers like Lamar Jackson and T.J. Watt are being taught the deep-rooted dislike and respect that helped turn this matchup into one of the best on the leagues schedule every year.
Plenty of divisions see one or two teams’ peak. For instance, the New England Patriots, their division of opponents have been a pool of bottom feeders for nearly two decades. The Atlanta Falcons went to a Super Bowl then disappeared leaving the consistent New Orland Saints left jabbing with the up-and-coming Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Let’s not forget the Carolina Panthers who followed the same blue print as the Falcons with Super Bowl, then bust.
Year in and year out. Season after season the Ravens and Steelers remain that standard by which all NFL rivalries are compared. None come close to matching the tenure of these two franchises.
“We are back in the kitchen,” Tomlin said.
“It is AFC North ball. You know we like that. We respect it. It is cool to be in what we believe is the game of the week for the third week in a row. We are humbling honored to be in that.”
Pittsburgh is currently the last unbeaten team in the NFL (6-0), with Baltimore having just one blemish on the record (5-1) a loss to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
The Ravens have won the last two division titles, but that may play into the favor of the Steelers. One thing to point out is no team in the history of the AFC North has ever been crowned king, three straight years in a row.
Anyone can win a division just look at the dismal NFC East, with the leading 2-4-1 Philadelphia Eagles in first place. Since 2000, no two division teams have won more regular season games than the Ravens and Steelers combined (189).
The wins lay the foundation for the success that is made reality by the coaches and players who get to partake in this battle.
If not for longest and most successful dynasty in modern sports, in the Patriots dominating the AFC and NFL for two decades, one might think that these two teams would have had more opportunities for Super Bowl victories. New England has played in nine Super Bowls since 2001, with Baltimore and Pittsburgh combining for five combined, since 2000.
Without Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, a fan of the Ravens and Steelers, can only dream of what might have been.
The Steelers are 6-0 for the first-time since 1978 and could match the franchise longest unbeaten streak (7-0), with a win over Baltimore. The Ravens have only one blemish on their record a defeat to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
“We know it is a big test this week,” David DeCastro said while wearing a Florida Gators Covid-19 mask. Something he took out of left tackle Alejandro Villanueva’s car. The “recommissioned” mask as DeCastro joked belonged to former Gator Maurkice Pouncey. The Pro Bowl guard played DeCastro played his collegiate career at Stanford, hence the bizarre vision when he arrived for the Zoom call.
These are two heavy weights of the AFC that have battled for division supremacy with longevity and success, that few other divisions can match. Look across the landscape and it is hard to find two teams in recent memory that have been more successful in the same division than Baltimore and Pittsburgh.
“This is AFC North football,” DeCastro said.
“These games are always had fought. Baltimore has always been consistent and coached well. You know what you are going to get from them.”
So, while the distaste for each other is real, there must be an underlying sense of brotherhood and comradery, for what they have created collectively. Epically hard-fought games over the years filled with some of the league’s best players, creates the legacy that has built this weekend’s game into more than any other division game.
It is an NFL tradition you are lucky enough to witness.
“It’s going to be a real test,” DeCastro said.
A bit of an understatement.
Get your popcorn ready!
The battle happens this weekend in Baltimore.
Photo Credit Frank Hyatt