The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens have one of the best rivalries in all of football. There is so much to love about those games, mostly because the cities are so similar. They are both originally industrial cities situated on rivers and have hard-working, blue-collar residents who are passionate about their sports teams.
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Pittsburgh Steelers' legendary safety, Troy Polamalu (43) after a pick-six in the AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens.
This is impressive, considering the Ravens have only been around since 1996.The two teams however, are so geographically close, they have been in the same division since the Ravens' inception. While the Steelers have strong rivalries with their other divisional opponents (the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals), the mutual respect between the Ravens and the Steelers really sets them apart.
Both teams favor strong defenses and physical smashmouth football. They have both been very competitive for the majority of the past couple of decades, which means they often have to face each other in the playoffs.
That's why it was no surprise when tons of trash-talking commenced following former Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen's signing with the Black and Gold. Queen's former teammates took to social media to complain about him pretending the grass is greener in the Steel City, but Queen clapped back, going so far as to insult the food in Baltimore, proclaiming Pittsburgh the better city.
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Steelers' new defensive captain Patrick Queen during the Friday Night Lights practice in Latrobe.
New players to both teams always talk about the passion behind the way these two teams butt heads. The Ravens' new running back, Derrick Henry, is no exception. Henry is no stranger to the Steelers, having played them a few times while with the Tennessee Titans. Henry admitted recently on a Yahoo Sports Podcast however, that the road to be a real Raven runs through Pittsburgh, and his teammates are all schooling him on which teams they hate.
"I'm sure they'll get me quite acclimated once the season starts," said Henry. "I know the big thing around here is Pittsburgh Steelers, and they say you're not a Raven till you beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. So I got long way to go, and we'll cross that bridge when we get there. But that rivalry is definitely real over here in Baltimore."
While with the Titans, Henry played the Steelers three times; the Steelers own that series 3-0. Henry had 44 rushes for 182 yards and three touchdowns during those games. Regardless of that, Henry is widely considered one of the best running backs in the NFL. He has been the NFL Offensive Player of the Year and has been selected to two Pro Bowls. He's twice been the rushing yards and rushing touchdown leader for the league.
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Former Tennessee Titans RB Derrick Henry is now with the Baltimore Ravens.
The Steelers are 32-24 against the Ravens all-time, including winning both games in the 2023 season. This season, the Steelers have all of their division games towards the end of the season. The Ravens are the first divisional matchup they will face in Week 11. Over the past several years, the Ravens have always been predicted as one of the teams to beat. This isn't surprising given their stout defenses and their Lamar Jackson-led offense. Regardless, the Steelers have managed to come out on top more than not in recent years.
Steelers' Patrick Queen Is A Major Obstacle
When the Steelers added Queen to the roster, they fixed the major hole they had at middle linebacker. Queen was drafted in 2020 and played across from Roquan Smith while he was with the Ravens. While Smith often stole the spotlight, Queen came into his own in 2023. He was named an All-Pro at the end of that season, just in time to get himself a big contract with another team.
The Steelers made Queen the highest-paid free agent the franchise has ever had. Recently, former Pittsburgh legend Ben Roethlisberger sang Queen's praises, calling him a "stud" and saying he would be one of the most important additions to the team.
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Steelers' Patrick Queen and Najee Harris going at it during a backs-on-backers drill in Latrobe, PA.
Roethlisberger had the opportunity to play against Queen during his last two seasons in the league, but that was before Queen really turned up the heat. He added that when you have a player like Queen on your roster, he helps defer attention away from some of the Steelers' star defenders, like T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Cameron Heyward, who are frequently double-teamed.
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