PITTSBURGH (AP) — The rivalry between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens is filled with "villains on both sides" as Mike Tomlin put it.
Lamar Jackson is still waiting for his chance to become one.
Seven years into his career, the Ravens quarterback has more NFL MVP awards (two) than he does victories over the Steelers. Jackson takes a 1-3 mark as a starter against Pittsburgh into Sunday's showdown at Acrisure Stadium.
Asked if the lack of success — and in some ways, opportunity due to happenstance — in one of the NFL's most heated series bothers him, Jackson nodded.
“Yes, definitely,” he said. “But I get a chance to go up against them this year, so I’m good, right now.”
Actually, Jackson might be better than that.
The 27-year-old leads the NFL in quarterback rating and touchdown passes while masterfully running the league's most potent offense. Jackson appears to be at the height of his considerable powers, one of the reasons Tomlin, the league's longest-tenured head coach, has referred to him as “Mr. Jackson” repeatedly this week.
“He's a challenge,” Tomlin said. “He's a challenge in all circumstances.”
Except, it seems, when the Steelers (7-2) are on the other side of the field. Pittsburgh has largely succeeded where so many others have failed.
Jackson's next rushing touchdown against Pittsburgh will be his first. He has managed just four scoring passes while getting picked off seven times, though veteran defensive tackle Cam Heyward isn't sure his team has developed a cheat code for a player who in many ways is the football equivalent of one.
“It’s not like he’s not dicing us up,” Heyward said. “You know, he’s a heck of a talent that you try to bottle up, but you never can.”
Jackson and the Ravens (7-3) are in many ways due for a breakout, or whatever passes for one when facing the NFL's second-ranked scoring defense. If it comes to that, Pittsburgh believes it has the pieces in place to keep up, a marked shift from recent years when every first down let alone touchdown felt like a struggle.
The Steelers have hit another gear since Russell Wilson returned from a calf injury last month. Pittsburgh is undefeated in his three starts, with the offense averaging 30 points a game.
“I think that we can definitely score points and we can do some special things,” Wilson said.
The nine-time Pro Bowler offered a glimpse late in last week's 28-27 victory against Washington when Wilson pulled aside newly acquired wide receiver Mike Williams in Pittsburgh's penultimate drive and quite literally drew up a route in the dirt that led to Williams hauling in a patented Wilson “moonball” for the go-ahead touchdown.
Standing a few yards in front of Wilson watching Williams make his first catch with the Steelers, rookie center Zach Frazier couldn't help but think of the possibilities that may lie ahead.
“That play alone was special,” Frazier said. “Being able to come back in close games like that, it's cool. I think we're on the right track.”
One Jackson and the Ravens are only too eager to derail. And so it goes in the AFC North.
“It’s always the same goal; we want to win,” Jackson said. "We want to be the ones that come out victorious, and that’s going to be the goal going into this game.”
Heading back, part 1
The Ravens landed wide receiver Diontae Johnson last month in a deal with Carolina. Johnson has caught only one pass in two games with Baltimore, but now the Ravens face Pittsburgh. Johnson spent his first five seasons with the Steelers from 2019-23.
“Just being back in that stadium, where it all started, it’s going to be different,” Johnson said. "I actually have never been in the away locker room (in Pittsburgh), so that’s going to be different for me, but I’m ready to get back there, just to see the good people that I made relationships with. But other than that, it’s a big moment for me.”
Tomlin, by contrast, said he hadn't put much thought into Johnson's return.
“They got more significant pieces with larger roles that are occupying my attention at this part of the week,” he said.
Heading back, part 2
Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen spent his first four seasons with the Ravens before signing a three-year deal with Pittsburgh last spring. Queen acknowledged this week that Baltimore's decision to let him walk in free agency bothered him for months, though he stressed he's at peace with it now.
While he remains close with many of his former teammates — Jackson included — Queen said he's looking forward to the opportunity to do something he wasn't allowed to in Baltimore: take Jackson to the ground.
Though Queen is still looking for his first sack in Pittsburgh, he's starting to regularly deliver the kind of splash plays that led the Steelers to spend $41 million for his services.
“He realizes what we brought him here to do,” Tomlin said. “And he’s embraced that in terms of being a leader and hub of communication. I’ve no issue with that. I just think that over time, it’s reasonable to expect him to play faster, to see his talent show up more consistently.”
Taking advantage
The Ravens have scored touchdowns on 33 of their 43 red zone chances — their 76.7% success rate is No. 1 in the league. Derrick Henry is obviously a big reason for Baltimore's productivity. He has scored in all 10 games this season, with 14 TDs.
Henry is the fifth player since 1970 — joining O.J. Simpson, Jerry Rice, John Riggins and Todd Gurley — to score touchdowns in 10 straight games to start a season.
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AP Sports Writer Noah Trister in Baltimore contributed to this report.
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Will Graves, The Associated Press
