Steelers vs. Ravens, Week 5: 1st quarter in-game update

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens know each other well, but not necessarily these Steelers and these Ravens. For the first time in over a decade there was no Joe Flacco or Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback for these two franchises. Instead, Lamar Jackson and Mason Rudolph, both of the 2018 NFL Draft class, were leading the charge for their respective teams.

Maybe lacking the star power which once defined the rivalry, the Steelers and Ravens squared off in a crucial Week 5 contest at Heinz Field with the Steelers receiving the opening kickoff to start the game. However, a three and out gave the ball to Lamar Jackson and company with great field position. Jackson and Mark Ingram stormed down the field, but on 3rd and 7 Cameron Sutton broke up a pass intended for Marquise Brown and forced a Justin Tucker field goal to make the score 3-0 in favor of the visitors.

The Steelers next drive was short lived when Jaylen Samuels lined up in the wildcat, and instead of running the ball tried to throw a pass to James Washington which was intercepted. It set up the Ravens in the red-zone, and just a few plays later Mark Ingram punched the ball into the end zone for the touchdown to make the score 10-0 with 4:48 left in the first quarter.

The silent Steelers’ offense woke up on their next drive, leaving the gadgets behind and running an uptempo offense. Fueled by James Conner running the ball and Mason Rudolph hitting James Washington to get the ball into Baltimore territory, Rudolph was able to hit JuJu Smith-Schuster for a 35-yard touchdown to get Pittsburgh right back in the game. The Chris Boswell point-after was good, making the score 10-7 with 2:41 left in the opening quarter.

The Ravens had the football and were around midfield at the end of the first quarter.