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He’s 1-3 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but Lamar Jackson has fixed the biggest problem the Baltimore Ravens have experienced against their most troublesome rival.
Specifically, Jackson’s made significant progress throwing from the pocket. That’s the one area where he’s struggled most against the Steelers, according to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley: “Jackson’s 21.2 QBR when inside the pocket against Pittsburgh is his lowest against any team. He has only completed 59.2% of his throws when inside the pocket against the Steelers, averaging 6.4 yards per pass attempt.”
Yet numbers this season have Hensley convinced Jackson will change the narrative when the two teams tussle for control of the AFC North in Week 11. Hensley pointed out how throwing from the pocket “is an area where Jackson is now thriving. This season, he is connecting on a career-best 71.5% of his passes inside the pocket, averaging 9.3 yards per pass attempt.”
The upward trend of Jackson’s numbers from the pocket is timely since the Steelers have become the NFL’s best at negating mobile quarterbacks.
Lamar Jackson Can Beat Steelers From Where They Want Him to Play
This season’s Steelers defense has turned confining running signal-callers to one spot into an art form. The Steelers are dictating where opposing quarterbacks are throwing from.
As Bradley Locker of Pro Football Focus detailed, “The Steelers have permitted only five scrambles for 15 yards all year — yes, you read that correctly. That’s the lowest total allowed through 10 weeks since the Bears in 2008. Pittsburgh was able to contain Jayden Daniels in a major way in Week 10, limiting the stellar rookie to only three carries for five yards.”
Their win over the Washington Commanders in Week 10 illustrated how the Steelers are forcing nimble-footed QBs to stay in the pocket. They swarmed around Jayden Daniels, the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NFL draft, and a rookie already drawing comparisons to Jackson.
Daniels never got going against the Steelers because the Black and Gold refused to “let him get loose on run plays and bootlegs,” per Nate Tice of Yahoo! Sports. Tice highlighted the way “Edge defenders ran straight at Daniels on read plays to make him give the ball or they had a scrape defender behind.”
The closing note about how the “Commanders were able to pop some runs because of” Pittsburgh’s strategy could be significant for the Ravens. They have two-time league rushing champion Derrick Henry in the backfield.
Containing Jackson and stopping Henry might tempt the Steelers to continue relying on a former Raven. Inside linebacker Patrick Queen played a key role in disturbing Daniels, a role described by Chris Simms of NBC Sports.
Simms detailed how the Steelers “used Patrick Queen to mush rush, push the pocket towards his side, and let him disrupt or clean things up.”
Queen was upset by the way he left the Ravens in the offseason, but now he’s on the other side of a rivalry the Steelers have bossed recently.
Ravens Need to Snap Jinx Against Biggest Rivals
The Ravens have lost three-straight to the Steelers and trail the old enemy in the race for divisional supremacy this season. Now is the time for Jackson and Co. to end the jinx, although it won’t be easy.
Not when the Steelers have a tough and resourceful defense used to going up against dual-threat quarterbacks in practice. Both starter Russell Wilson and backup Justin Fields are most effective when throwing on the run, so the Steelers will be well prepared for Jackson.
The bigger test could well come from Henry, as well as from a returning speedster on the ground. Second-year pro Keaton Mitchell is back, so the Ravens can unleash a one-two punch at running back.
Henry and Mitchell could split the Steelers focus enough for Jackson to make the big plays the Ravens will need to snap this unwanted streak.
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