Bill Cowher knows more than most what it takes for the Pittsburgh Steelers to beat the Baltimore Ravens, and he has a plan focused on two hidden threats the Ravens can’t ignore during Week 18’s winner-takes-all matchup at Acrisure Stadium.
Cowher, who coached the Steelers from 1992 to 2006, winning 149 games and a Super Bowl title, told CBS Sports how his banged-up former team can deny the in-form Ravens. For Cowher, “the guys I go to right now, that we talked about beginning of the season, Jonnu Smith and Pat Freiermuth. To me, I’d put a game plan together that’s running the ball, and it’s play-action with Freiermuth and Smith. They are the two best skill players you have right now.”
What Cowher has pinpointed is how the Ravens can’t become overconfident because the Steelers are set to miss key weapons. Big-play wide receiver DK Metcalf will be absent through suspension, while beefy, blocking tight end Darnell Washington is sidelined with a broken arm.
Cowher enjoyed 14 career victories at their expense, so the Ravens should heed his warning about Freiermuth and Smith. They present a clear matchup problem head coach John Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Zach Orr can’t ignore after last week’s multiple mishaps in coverage.
Steelers Tight Ends to Test Key Ravens Weakness
Harbaugh wasn’t subtle about questioning Orr’s play-calling after the Green Bay Packers burned the Ravens for big plays through the air consistently in Week 17. A lot of Harbaugh’s ire focused on the Pack’s opening touchdown, a 39-yard strike to wide receiver Christian Watson, who got open between the numbers and split safeties playing two-deep coverage.
Watson won on a seam route, the kind of pattern the Steelers can use to free Freiermuth. The veteran is “the only Steelers player with multiple catches on throws over 20 yards,” according to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley and Brooke Pryor.
Freiermuth’s two grabs of 20-plus mean he can offer a stern test of the Ravens’ ability to stay with tight ends in space. It’s been another weakness against the pass for Orr’s unit.
The flaw was notable when Ravens struggled to contain Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper against the New England Patriots in Week 16. They combined for eight catches, 69 yards and a touchdown.
Hooper burned Baltimore’s defense on a 26-yard grab to provide another lowlight for the Ravens’ deep-pass coverage. Communication has been an issue, but downhill players like safety Alohi Gilman have also had trouble keeping up with tight ends when being run vertically.
A better plan than trying to match up in coverage would be for the Ravens to force Freiermuth and Smith to stay in and block.
Zach Orr Must Turn Up the Heat in Week 18
Orr’s best defense will be to attack. Meaning to send an array of sophisticated pressure packages at 42-year-old Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Relentless blitzing can work if the Ravens turn All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton and useful roving edge-rusher Dre’Mont Jones loose.
Doing that will mean the Steelers having to leave tight ends in for extra protection. It could even be Smith, who’s more of a move-style pass-catcher than Freiermuth, but blitzing from the slot can delay, or eliminate entirely, Smith’s path to the secondary.
What the Ravens must do is take away easy targets for Freiermuth and Smith. Those are the best way for Rodgers to compensate for being without Metcalf and Washington.
Making the Steelers account for pressure will have an already hamstrung offense playing in retreat.
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