What We Saw: Week 14

The What We Saw team recaps all of the noteworthy action from Week 14

Ben Brown
What We Saw 2 Years Ago
Series Navigation
Introduction
Raiders @ Rams
Jets @ Bills
Browns @ Bengals
Texans @ Cowboys
Vikings @ Lions
Eagles @ Giants
Ravens @ Steelers
Jaguars @ Titans
Chiefs @ Broncos
Panthers @ Seahawks
Buccaneers @ 49ers
Dolphins @ Chargers

Ravens @ Steelers

Final Score: Ravens 16, Steelers 14

Writer: Ben Brown (@BenBrownPL on Twitter)

 

In a battle between the two longest-tenured head coaches in the NFL, the Ravens came out on top in an ugly, low-scoring game that featured a rotating carousel at the QB position for both teams. The Ravens held a halftime lead despite the Steelers being able to move the ball with relative ease for much of the first half, and that was thanks to two first-half interceptions by Mitch Trubisky in the red zone.

This was a hard-hitting game that got chippy at times. The Ravens moved the ball on the ground pretty easily all game, which was a good thing because Tyler Huntley was knocked out in the third quarter and replaced by Anthony Brown.

The Steelers made it interesting late with a long drive that resulted in a touchdown to Pat Freiermuth, but, as was the case the rest of the day, the Steelers couldn’t stop the Ravens on the ground and Gus Edwards clinched a victory with a run on third down.

 

Baltimore Ravens

 

Quarterback

 

Tyler Huntley: 8/12, 88 Yards | 9 Carries, 31 Yards, 1 Fumble (Recovered)

Anthony Brown: 3/5, 16 Yards | 3 Carries, -5 Yards

 

With Lamar Jackson out, Tyler Huntley stepped into the starting QB role for a Ravens team that has Super Bowl aspirations. It was also yet another tryout for Huntley as the starter, and with Jackson heading into Free Agency it would go a long way for Huntley if he stepped up and played well against a division opponent. Things did not go to plan, however.

Huntley made some timely throws and showed off his scrambling ability on multiple occasions. He came up just short on a couple of third and long scrambles, and the Ravens converted one of those two 4th downs and ended up scoring a TD on one of those drives.

Huntley wasn’t asked to do much of anything through the air. He has a long windup that looks problematic, and his accuracy isn’t great. On his first throw of the game, he targeted Mark Andrews and threw it right to the defender’s left hand. Had the defender tried to catch it with two hands it would have been a pick, but luckily for the Ravens it was dropped.

On the first drive of the second half, Huntley took the snap, dropped back, then ran it up the middle. He was tackled at the legs and then hit up high by a shoulder, and his body was bent back in a very awkward position. Huntley looked fine on the sideline initially, but soon after he went to the tent and then jogged to the locker room. He was ruled out with a concussion.

Enter Anthony Brown. Brown took his first snap from his own one-yard line and threw a short out pass for a completion while under pressure. He was not asked to do much – the Ravens had a lead and they were running the ball well, why risk it with an undrafted rookie QB? It will be interesting to see who suits up at QB for this team next week.

 

Running Back

 

J.K. Dobbins: 15 Carries, 120 Yards, TD

Gus Edwards: 13 Carries, 66 Yards

Patrick Ricard: 1 Carry, 2 Yards

Kenyan Drake: 1 Carry, 1 Yard | 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 1 Yard

 

JK Dobbins returned to the field on Sunday after missing seven games, and he looked like he hadn’t skipped a beat. He truly looked awesome in this one. He was the clear lead back in this offense, easily outcarrying the Gus Edwards–Kenyan Drake tandem. He looked quick on his feet and hit holes hard. He had a 44 yard run where he exploded through a hole and took it into the red zone, then he took it into the end zone on the next play. With injuries at QB potentially being an issue as the season comes to an end, he could be a valuable fantasy asset just as fantasy playoffs begin.

 

 

 

The usually stout Steelers run defense looked mortal on Sunday, as even Gus Edwards had a nice day against them. No, there wasn’t a ton of volume for him, but when he had the ball in his hands he ran hard and found room to run. With Dobbins back, he is a clear number two option. That also means Kenyan Drake is the number three option, and he played like it. I didn’t hear his name until the two-minute warning in the 1st half, and then the next time I heard it was in the 3rd quarter when he fumbled the ball. I have a feeling that Drake’s days of fantasy relevance may be over.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Demarcus Robinson: 6 Targets, 5 Receptions, 52 Yards

DeSean Jackson: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 34 Yards

Mark Andrews: 6 Targets, 2 Receptions, 17 Yards

Devin Duvernay: 1 Target

 

Umm… at least DeMarcus Robinson caught some passes? Not much to write about here, to be honest. Robinson had three catches on their first two drives and finished with five. The passing game simply wasn’t in the game plan on Sunday and it worked for the Ravens. Why force it when they don’t need to?

That obviously had a negative impact on anyone who needed a big day out of Mark Andrews. Andrews’ first catch of the day came in the second half. He only had one more on the day. Again, this was simply a result of the game script and their ability to run all over Pittsburgh for most of the day. This could be the game plan moving forward if Lamar Jackson remains sidelined, though, so it could be more of the same for Andrews’ managers at the most important time of the year.

 

Pittsburgh Steelers

 

Quarterback

 

Mitch Trubisky: 22/30, 276 Yards, TD, 3 INT

Kenny Pickett: 0/1 | 2 Carries, 16 Yards

 

Kenny Pickett had himself a short day. On the Steelers’ first drive, Pickett scrambled a couple of times and picked up a first down on one of them. On 3rd and 4, Pickett was sacked and thrown to the ground, landing on his head.

 

 

He got up and was clearly shaken up. Pickett went to the blue tent but came back out and went in for the second drive. It was reported that he had cleared concussion protocol, however, something changed after the second drive because Pickett was pulled from the game and ruled out with a concussion.

Enter Mitch Trubisky. On Trubisky’s first drive, he faced 3rd and 8 and did a nice job of rolling out to his left to evade pressure, hitting Pat Freiermuth over the middle for a first down. On the next play, he hit George Pickens on a 42-yard strike down the left sideline to get the ball in the red zone. After a DPI in the end zone on the next play put the ball at the goal line, Najee Harris dove over the goal line for the score.

In the 2nd quarter, the Steelers drove the ball down into the red zone on the legs of the running game. As soon as Pittsburgh put the ball in Trubisky’s hands, he threw a pick over the middle of the field to Roquan Smith, the former Bear who made a great leaping grab to come down with the interception. It was the first turnover for the Steelers in their last five games.

 

 

The Steelers got the ball back right before halftime, and Trubisky made a couple of nice throws to Diontae Johnson and Pickens to get the Steelers in field goal range. A few plays later, however, Trubisky stared down his receiver and Patrick Queen made a phenomenal leaping interception to end the drive.

 

 

Trubisky makes plays with his feet to keep drives alive, and he did it twice on their 2nd drive of the 2nd half. However, once again, Trubisky threw a killer pick.

 

 

Honestly, the Steelers should have won this game. They moved the ball well for most of it, but Trubisky killed them with the turnovers.

 

Running Back

 

Najee Harris: 12 Carries, 33 Yards, TD | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 17 Yards

Jaylen Warren: 3 Carries, 11 Yards | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 16 Yards

Benny Snell Jr.: 2 Carries, 4 Yards

 

While the Ravens ran the ball all day long, the Steelers did the opposite. The Steelers really struggled to do anything on the ground. It’s never a good sign when your starting QB, who got knocked out after the 2nd drive, ran for nearly half as many yards as their starting RB. Najee Harris was lucky to score a TD in this one – he let George Pickens do all the work to get the ball down to the one yard line. Harris then jumped over the goal line for the cheap score.

 

 

The Steelers’ 4th drive of the game was their best for the ground game. Najee had multiple chunk plays of 5-7 yards, and Benny Snell Jr. got a few carries as well. They carried the ball six times on nine plays to get the ball into the red zone, then Trubisky threw his first interception of the game. After that, the Steelers mostly threw it the rest of the game. The Steelers’ offensive line is not a good run blocking bunch, so Pittsburgh didn’t even try to force it against the Ravens’ stout front seven. Najee had a down game as a result.

Jaylen Warren had a nice 14 yard catch and run. Other than that he was nowhere to be seen.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Diontae Johnson: 8 Targets, 6 Receptions, 82 Yards

George Pickens: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 78 Yards

Pat Freiermuth: 6 Targets, 3 Receptions, 33 Yards, TD

Steven Sims: 1 Carry, 1 Yard | 4 Targets, 4 Receptions, 30 Yards

Connor Heyward: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 13 Yards

Gunner Olszewski: 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 7 Yards

Zach Gentry: 1 Target

 

Last week, George Pickens was shown on the sideline demanding the ball after the offense struggled to move it all day against a weak Falcons defense. His head coach came out and defended him, and Pickens was a bit more involved in this one. He only had three targets this week, but he had a 42-yard catch down the sideline that was arguably the play of the game for the Steelers. He was then targeted in the end zone on the next play where he drew a defensive pass interference penalty, which set up the touchdown by Najee Harris. He also had this nice catch on the sideline:

 

 

Trubisky spread the ball around to seemingly everyone in this game, but he keyed in on Diontae Johnson at times. Johnson didn’t have a flashy day, but he didn’t have any drops which is a plus. He is the high volume option in this offense.

Pat Freiermuth had a quiet day for the most part, but he scored a touchdown late to give Pittsburgh a chance.

 

 

 

Series Navigation
Introduction
Raiders @ Rams
Jets @ Bills
Browns @ Bengals
Texans @ Cowboys
Vikings @ Lions
Eagles @ Giants
Ravens @ Steelers
Jaguars @ Titans
Chiefs @ Broncos
Panthers @ Seahawks
Buccaneers @ 49ers
Dolphins @ Chargers

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