BALTIMORE (93.7 The Fan) – It’s not only the fifth consecutive playoff loss, it’s the fifth straight time the once proud organization got their doors blown off early in a postseason game to doom a season.
The game Saturday night was over at halftime, sure they cut it to 14, but were they really a threat? All of these games have essentially be over at half. In the last five playoff games the Steelers have trailed 21-0, 21-7, 28-0, 21-0, 21-0 in the second quarter. You aren’t going to come back from those deficits against playoff teams, especially on the road.
The Steelers were steamrolled by the Ravens in the first 30 minutes
· Total yards 308 to 59
· 1st downs 19 to 2
· Time of possession 20:27 to 9:33
“We just didn’t start fast,” said linebacker Patrick Queen. “The same message we’ve been preaching. It’s that simple. We started slow.”
“We didn’t start fast, that hurt us this game,” said linebacker Alex Highsmith. “In games we lost this season we haven’t started fast. We started way too slow and didn’t get the job done.”
Even when the Steelers showed a little offense with a pair of nice throws and a touchdown to cut the lead to 21-7, the Ravens rolled down the field covering 80 yards in three plays overcoming a first-down sack.
What made this game as bad as any, not just the fact it’s your chief division rival, that you used to win playoff games against, but there were former players like Ryan Clark and national announcers like Kirk Herbstreit questioning the team’s fight. Wondering if it was a team that was prepared for a fight?
Is there anything more damning than those that played the game, especially for the Steelers, questioning the heart and desire of the organization.
“You think about guys like Coach T.
and Cam and TJ and Minkah and those guys that have been here fighting to get it done on this stage right here,” said corner Donte Jackson. “Words can’t really describe it, it’s a terrible feeling.”
“Before I got here, obviously I know football, I know that in the past we’ve played well in the beginning of the season and s--- the bed at the end and the same s--- happened this year,” said safety DeShon Elliott.
“Closed the season out on a five-game losing streak including the playoffs.”
“We got to figure out what’s the problem. We got to figure out how to get better. We have to figure out how to get past that point. We got to figure out how to finish strong in a season and go into the playoffs hot.”
There is a lot to figure out. The standard has become playoff failures. Do they currently have the people who can change that?