PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – NBC was looking for a better game instead they found the Fred and Ginger, Jennifer Grey-Patrick Swayze, John Travolta-Olivia Newton John of the NFL.
It’s Tomlin and Harbs.
“He's an awesome dance partner,” Tomlin said of facing John Harbaugh and the Ravens Sunday night. “They're an awesome dance partner.”
Often previously they have met in prime-time, Tomlin says it’s the 10th time just on Sunday night. Considering his team was 2-6, and then left for dead again after the loss in the previous matchup with the Ravens, he’s excite about it.
“It's just good to be in significant game,” Tomlin said. “So, when I got the call the other night that the game was flexed, man, I didn't hate that. I love that. If your games are not getting flexed this time of year, you're not doing it right. You're not in significant ones.”
“We don't run from that; we run to that. Although we do respect their environment and the hostility of that environment on Sunday Night Football, we're not going to hate the fact that we're there. We're going to embrace that and smile in the face of the adversity that those variables create.”
Tomlin is 18-16 in career against the Ravens almost all of previous against Harbs. The Steelers had won four-straight in the series before falling 16-14 at home earlier in December. The Ravens played without starting QB Lamar Jackson. They lost back-up quarterback Tyler Huntley in the third quarter and yet still won with a practice squad QB.
It culminated with the Steelers not being able to get the ball back at the end of the game even though they, and everyone watching, knew the Ravens were going to run it. In total without a proven NFL quarterback, Baltimore ran for 215 yards-120 and a TD from JK Dobbins in his first game back from injury, another 66 from Gus Edwards.
Since then, the Steelers have given up 79 yards TOTAL on the ground to the Panthers and Raiders combined.
“I don't know that that was a fork in the road, if you will, for our run defense,” Tomlin said. “More than anything, I thought we had a bad day. I think our run defense has been really solid over the second half of the year. It wasn't reflected in our play that day. There's nothing we can do about that. That tape’s in the can. We're preparing for this tape that we're going to put out on Sunday night.”
It’s tougher than the traditional run to stop because of the mobility of the quarterback, even if it’s not Lamar Jackson. Huntley has rushed for 112 yards and a TD, no where near the explosiveness as Jackson, but still a threat.
“Traditional offenses, nonrunning quarterbacks, they play with 10, essentially, in the running game,” Tomlin said. “When you have quarterback mobility and the willingness to use it, you play with 11. So, whether the quarterback has the ball or not, you have to account for him.”
“Obviously, that makes run defense more challenging. Obviously, that's why teams with quarterback mobility perform really well in running the ball. Chicago has their struggles, but they're a challenging run team because they’ve got quarterback mobility, for example.”
“As you’ve seen Huntley twice now playing for Jackson, is there a lot of difference in how they approach their run? Are they leaning more on the backs when Huntley is in there, and does that make it any more of a challenging dynamic? No, I think that it’s very similar in terms of their ability to utilize the quarterback position by design, or to make sure you are responsible for it.”
“Whether or not the quarterback is carrying the ball or not, you have to be responsible for him as they carry out play fakes and so forth that mirror other coordinated runs. Whether it's Huntley or Jackson, all of those things have been
The question is, did the Steelers fix something from that first Ravens matchup they can benefit from now? Does that mean they will be able to at least limit the Baltimore ground game?
“We’ll see,” Tomlin said. “You’d like to think you learn lessons, but the application of those lessons really is the display of learning. So, we’ll see.”
It’s a must learn for the Steelers, they have to win or their slight playoff dreams end. Tomlin’s preaching it. For Harbaugh, they still have a chance to win the division, so it’s big for them.
“We're excited about this matchup,” Tomlin said. “We're familiar with them. They're familiar with us. I think we're all familiar with being in significant games. The new Steeler, the young Steeler, we’ll kind of educate them as I'm sure they will the new or the young Raven.”
The NFL dance card is getting full and there may not be room for Tomlin and Harbs.