In their Week 14 loss to the Ravens, the usually sound Steelers run defense was trounced for 215 rushing yards.
It was the last 10 that stung the most for Cam Heyward.
"We didn't win those three downs and they were able to run the clock out," Heyward said Thursday at the UMPC Sports Complex. "That weighs on me more than anything, because we didn't give our offense another chance to go down there and win it."
"We know we have to play better than we did the last time," Teryl Austin said. "They beat us at the line of scrimmage. Schematically, we’ll obviously try to do some different things as well. Really, the most important thing, forget the scheme and everything else, we just have to play better. I think they won that battle. I think overall over the course of the year our guys have been playing well, and we had a bad game. They are good at what they do. So, when you have that kind of meet in the middle like that, that could end up like what happened to us. And then we have a bad game."
That 215 yard performance was arguably the low point for the Steelers' defense, They may have allowed more points in a game, but knowing the run was coming with the Ravens' second and third string quarterbacks and not being able to stop it added another layer of insult. As a team, they ranked fourth in football by allowing just 4 yards a carry.
The last few weeks have been much better on the ground, as the Panthers could only muster 21 rushing yards and the Raiders just 58, giving the Steelers two much-needed wins to keep whatever playoff hopes they have left alive.
And while Ravens' starter Lamar Jackson could be out once again, that offense was able to move with backup Tyler Huntley in Week 14.
"I'm not discounting him [Huntley], but that two-headed monster of [J.K.] Dobbins and [Gus] Edwards really do a great job of falling forward with that big offensive line," Heyward said. "We're looking forward to attacking them."
A win on Sunday night in Baltimore could potentially put the Steelers within striking distance of a playoff berth, or they could be mathematically eliminated before the kickoff if the Dolphins win. Motivating the defense if the latter happens is not going to be an issue, according to Austin.
"We've been in that mode ever since we started out so poorly," Austin said. "Every week is really a playoff-type atmosphere for us and our mindset, because there is no room for error, and we can finish perfect and still maybe not get in. But I think that’s the challenge. I think that's why we love this game. It gets to a point where, hey, you have to win. I don't think it puts any more pressure on our guys or makes us feel any different about the game. It's just, hey, this is the NFL, and as you get closer to the end of the year, you want the games to mean a lot. You want to be in these in these positions. And I think our guys are like that."
