From the highest of highs, to the lowest of lows.
The Steelers took their first lead of the game with 4:59 left in the 4th quarter, but the Ravens drove 92 yards to score the game winning touchdown with 8 seconds left to beat the Steelers, 23-20.
“It’s definitely a tough loss,” said S Troy Polamalu. “They played really well. Hats off to them.”
On the game winning touchdown, Joe Flacco found Torrey Smith in the corner of the end zone beating CB William Gay.
“On my part, that was the worst drive ever,” said Gay. “They made plays and we didn’t. That’s a great group over there and they showed it tonight.”
But after the game, S Ryan Clark took full responsibility for giving up the touchdown.
“The last play was a miscommunication between six guys, which shouldn’t have a miscommunication,” said Clark. “I’m the leader of that and I am the guy that is supposed to get everybody on the same page and I didn’t, mainly myself, and it left Will Gay in a bad position.”
The final touchdown play almost didn’t turn out as it did.
“The final play was actually supposed to be a speed out so I could catch the ball and get out of bounds, but he (Gay) was in press coverage and I was just able to run past him,” said Ravens WR Torrey Smith.
Flacco went 7 for 13 (13 plays) for 92 yards and the game winning touchdown in their final drive.
“He won the game,” Ben Roethlisberger said of Flacco. “He’s a good player and he stepped up when he needed to.”
The Steelers got touchdowns in the 4th quarter from Rashard Mendenhall on a 1 yard run and on a 25 yard touchdown pass from Roethlisberger to Mike Wallace.
Hines Ward left the game in the second quarter and didn’t return due to concussion-like symptoms.
With the loss, the Steelers drop to 6-3 overall and 0-2 in the AFC North Division going into another tough division game in Cincinnati against the 6-2 Bengals next Sunday.
Notes: The Ravens swept the Steelers in the season series, winning both games, for the first time since the 2006 season… The Ravens were 14 for 21 on 3rd down conversions… WR Antonio Brown caught five passes for 109 yards… Many celebrities were on hand for the game including Mt. Lebanon native and ER actor Joe Manganiello, Law and Order actor Chris Meloni and Survivor contestant Mikayla Wingle.
Image Source – (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
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