“Tonight these Ravens know well what is waiting for them. Pure Black noise. Energy that can be seen, heard, and felt. Meanwhile the Steelers with Mike Tomlin’s streak of 15 straight winning seasons, can be maintained for now if they can defeat this hostile crowd and their beloved heroes. The Monochromatic Mayhem, the Deafening Unity of the Blackout at M&T Bank Stadium awaits us all!”
(Sunday Night Football Theme from 2016 playing)
Bragging Rights Sports Presents:
A Maryland Culture Production
WELCOME TO 2023 AND THE GREATEST SHOW IN THE NFL! THE BLACKOUT!
CHARM CITY BEASTS
The Unrivaled Themed Story of the Baltimore Ravens
(WE’VE INVITED THE ENEMY TO THE PARTY!)
Lamar Jackson, Tyler Huntley, Mark Andrews, Justin Tucker, Marlon Humphrey, Marcus Peters, Roquan Smith, JK Dobbins, Calais Campbell, Kyle Hamilton, John Harbaugh, Greg Roman, Mike Macdonald, Eric DeCosta, Sashi Brown, Steve Bisciotti, Edgar, Allan, with Poe, and the Salty Marylander/Narrator Michael Hession.
Location: M&T Bank Stadium Opponent: Pittsburgh Steelers
Season 3 Episode 16: Deja Vu (2022 BLACKOUT Game II)
R-A-V-E-N-S RAVENS!
Narrator: I had to quote Chris Fowler’s preview of the 2019 Penn State Whiteout on that opening part didn’t I? With the playoffs already clinched the Boys in Purple still had two games left on their schedule. A perfect chance for them to prepare themselves for the postseason. John Harbaugh has stated that these last games will feel like playoff games due to the significance of each one. That’s right, two division games, including one in Cincinnati in Week 18 could determine the fate of the Ravens hopes for an AFC North Title. But to do so they need Planet LJ back from his knee injury. But once again, he nor Marcus Peters, and Calais Campbell weren’t at practice this week. All three would be inactive yet again. The biggest news of the week was that the Ravens and Maryland Stadium Authority extended the lease on M&T Bank Stadium for another 15 years. All I can say is why need a new stadium when this is one of the better ones that was built in the 90s. Steve Bisciotti and Sashi Brown agreed. But the question now is when will they need to begin renovations again? Probably another 10 years I’m guessing. The gameday presentation doesn’t really need changes unless they bring back Lee Greenwood, and U2. Another headline was Ravens legend Ed Reed becoming the head coach at Bethune-Cookman University, a historically black college in Daytona Beach, Florida. Reed becomes the 2nd former Raven to be a head coach at a black college. Joining one time teammate and Hall of Famer Deion Sanders.
Raven brothers, what do we have this week? Allan: Whistling (Poe is walking again without a boot) Narrator: Really, Poe recovered that quickly. I thought this was a torn drumstick. Poe: Whistling (That’s right, I’m back baby!) Narrator: Awesome! All I can say is how were you able to return this quickly. Poe: Whistling (My boy Rod Woodson during his career, suffered a similar injury yet made it back for the playoffs) Narrator: Oh, I see, he probably was giving you advice during your rehab. Poe: Whistling (Yes, thank goodness he is on our broadcast team) Narrator: That’s great! Edgar: Whistling (The fans don’t know this but we have a plan for them) Narrator: What is it, Edgar? Edgar: Whistling (Me and Allan will put Poe in a wheelchair, and as soon as we come out of the tunnel, Poe will come out of his chair and hype the crowd up.) Narrator: Oh you guys are trying to recreate Kevin Nash from WWE. Will you do this during the intro? Allan: Whistling (No, but we will certainly do it before the game is over) Narrator: Alright, sounds good. Salty Marylander. Marylander: YES! Narrator: Poe is off the IR! Marylander: HELL YES! Narrator: You’re going to be there right? Marylander: Absolutely, how could I not be. Narrator: Well this is going to be a fun weekend isn’t it?
Back to football this is a huge week. Not only is Poe coming back from injury, and the division may be at stake, the Boys in Purple get to face their longtime rivals. The Pittsburgh Steelers. Since the last time we saw these two teams play back in Week 14, the Steelers have been much better on both sides of the ball. Kenny Pickett who was injured in the first game is now healthy again. That and a now punishing Pittsburgh defense has kept their playoff hopes alive. They started the year 3-7, and have won four of five to set up a do-or-die showdown in Baltimore. You know what will make this even better? The NFL flexed this game to Sunday Night Football. The league’s ultimate rivalry needs to be showcased and the narratives in this matchup are huge. The Steelers have never had a losing season under Mike Tomlin, the football gods are in the Yinzers favor because they have rallied despite the sudden death of franchise icon Franco Harris. (WE ARE!) The Ravens are 19-3 at home in primetime under Harbaugh including 7-0 in the Blackout, which they brought out for this matchup. We must take into account that the Steelers are the only team to ever beat the Ravens Blackout unis and are the only squad that beat a full M&T Bank Stadium crowd in primetime in the regular season. So if there’s any team that is not afraid of the Raven myths it’s their arch rivals from YinzerLand. The atmosphere for this game was raucous just like most Blackout games over the years. Over 71,300 fans came for this game, the 3rd highest total for a regular season game in Ravens History. Which is good on the surface. But if you look around especially towards the north side of the stadium one thing becomes very apparent. (DRAMATIC MUSIC) M&T would be consumed by Steelers fans. Some say over 20,000 people rooted for the Black and Gold Brigade. (There were several sections in the lower level and upper deck on that side that were full of Terrible Towels) Easily shattering their own record for the most visiting fans at a Blackout set back in 2017. So not only do the Ravens have to treat this as a defacto playoff game, they may have to treat this as a road game too, especially on offense. The toughest part about this game was that Baltimore was getting their opponents best shot.
Mike Tomlin was going to do everything in his power to win. And not only that but Steelers OC Matt Canada would make a bold move. He was going to test the Ravens run defense early on often. Both Najee Harris, and Jaylen Warren were running like Franco and Rocky from their 70s heyday, thus meaning it would be hard to stop them. On the opening drive, Warren took an end around and went 31 yards to the Raven 13. But the drive stalled thanks to Marlon Humphrey making a nice breakup on George Pickens in the endzone. Leading 3-0, Pittsburgh made an early statement, but the question now was could Baltimore respond? They did. Snoop Huntley was witnessing the beginning of maybe the best half of his career. They, like the Steelers, were converting key 3rd Down plays. That was the case until a Brian Flores led defense shut down the running game deep in enemy territory. Now it’s 3-3. Edgar: Whistling (We’re ready to showcase our plan for Poe) Narrator: Go ahead. “You know it’s a rivalry game, the mascot Poe, injured in the preseason, brought out by Edgar, and Allan the other mascots. Poe breaks out of his wheelchair to come back for this big game. He got injured, he seriously was injured, comes back for this game, how bout that.” (Even Steeler fans were in awe of his return) My boy! Poe: Whistling (It feels great, now we need to get that win) Narrator: Alright. Now the energy on both sides is crazy. But the Steelers running game was firing on all cylinders. Both Harris and Warren were finding holes through the vaunted SOS unit. The key of this game for Pittsburgh like when they had Big Ben was key 3rd Downs. And for the most part they converted them. But an incompletion by Pickett attended for Pat Freiermuth stalled the drive. And worse, the normally reliable Chris Bowsell’s streak of 11 straight field goals at M&T ended when he hit the right upright towards the East End Zone. The Ravens got a major break, and they would take full advantage of it. They once again got into the red zone only to stall out thanks to the running game being contained by the Steelers front. But wait. BEEP! “After the play, Personal Foul, Unnecessary Roughness, Defense #97.” I’m surprised that this wasn’t against the Ravens, if this were in Pittsburgh they probably would have called it the other way. The Yinzers in attendance were furious. Even though the Marylanders were loud as well, the Steeler fans were cussing out the officials in a big way. Don’t worry Yinzers, the officials will give you a few makeup calls in the 2nd Half. For now, the Ravens took advantage of the extra play, as Huntley found Isaiah Likely for a TD. Leading 10-3 at halftime, and getting the ball, this would be a great chance for Baltimore to put some distance between themselves and their rivals.
BOOM! That all changed when Mike Tomlin slammed his Microsoft tablet to the ground inside the Steelers locker room. I wouldn’t blame him for doing that. This may be the difference between making the playoffs, and ending the season under 500. As the 2nd Half began, a theme began to change. Remember all the calls that went the Ravens way in the 1st Half, they’ll go the Steelers way in the 2nd. Case in point a holding call by Morgan Moses which whipped out a 25 yard gain by JK Dobbins. Luckily they got the penalty yards back, and kicked a field goal. You know what’s insane. The Ravens are getting dominated on the stat sheet in terms of total yards, and time of possession yet still lead by 10 points. But it doesn’t really feel like it. Considering that this season there have been more comebacks in the NFL than any other season by a wide margin, no lead especially in this rivalry is safe. Especially since Najee Harris is running wild. That trend would continue as the Steelers O-Line was opening up some nice holes for him. The objective for Matt Canada in the 2nd Half was simple. Expose Marcus Peters and Calais Campbell’s replacements. They did just that. Diontae Johnson was cooking Brandon Stephens just like he did last year. But once again, they made it all the way to the 15 only to settle for 3 points. This is the Ravens chance to knock out their rivals. Minkah Fitzpatrick is out of the game for now, but knowing him he’s going to pull a Polamalu and fake an injury. So with their secondary anchor out, that means. (DRAMATIC MUSIC) Oh god, Huntley got destroyed by TJ Watt, thus leading to a 3 and out. (Why did Patrick Ricard go in motion on that play instead of double him) Marylander: You know what, it may be early but let’s bring out Enter Sandman! Narrator: Sounds like a plan.
Even though it was tough to see especially during that light show, the Steelers sideline especially their defense was mimicking what the Ravens did in Pittsburgh back in Week 14 during Renegade. (And you saw plenty of Terrible Towels in the stands during the light show) But the Steelers are used to having a hype song pump them up because they have the same thing at their games too. So Pickett began scrambling around like the Leader of Men in his prime. They once again got into the Ravens red zone but like the other few times, they settled for a field goal. The Ravens streak of not allowing a TD at home has stretched to 15 quarters. And it looked as if the Steelers best chance at winning was gone. Because Justice Hill took the ensuing kickoff 56 yards to the Pittsburgh 40 and if it weren’t Chris Bowsell he would have taken it the distance. The Ravens have a chance to extend their lead. They even got into the Steelers red zone again, BEEP! “Holding, Offense #72.” Marylander: Oh GOD! WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN AGAINST THE STEELERS! A big play and victory in our hands only for the officials to take it away. Narrator: I know, but the NFL probably has money on the Steelers winning because of the narratives it will bring to Week 18. And on top of that Watt sacked Huntley again. Following a dropped pass by Likely. Another 3 and out. With 4 minutes to play, Baltimore had pinned the Steelers at their own 8 yard line. 92 yards away from a go ahead score. But once again, Mike Man’s defense could keep Kenny Pickett in the pocket. This is gonna end badly. HERE I COME TO SAVE THE DAY! Normally I would be playing that song for the Ravens, but in this case, their opponents also have a tendency of being bailed out by High End Talent. So this is the fourth time that the Steelers have crossed the Baltimore 20. Pittsburgh has over 400 yards of total offense and they only have 9 points. That is a complete understatement on how they’ve found ways to move down the field. Now they are possibly down to their final two plays, can Tomlin keep his streak alive, or will it vanquish into the almighty Blackout? “Pickett, flushed, pressured, throws on the run. CAUGHT BY HARRIS! FOR A TOUCHDOWN!” I’m going to ask one question. Are we sure Ben Roethlisberger ever retired? Because that looked like Big Ben in his prime. For the 2nd week in a row, the Steelers have a chance to pull off an Immaculate Comeback. And it will be even harder for the Ravens since they have no timeouts, but they do have a minute left. (They wasted their 1st timeout thanks to Steeler fans making plenty of noise early in the 4th) Now they must treat this as if they are on the road, since the 20,000 Steeler fans in attendance were starting to take over M&T. (I felt like Renegade would come on the PA system at that point) Oh mama I’m in fear for my life from the long arm of the law. HangMan is coming down from the gallows and I don’t have very long because Yinzers. Luckily with 20 seconds left, Huntley is one completion away from potentially sending this game into overtime, now don’t do anything stupid. “From the 38, a lot of pressure comes inside, Huntley comes outside, throws across his body, and it’s (DRAMATIC MUSIC) Intercepted! By Fitzpatrick! And the Steelers stay alive!” Marylander: WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY! (Those two plays were the loudest roars I have ever heard from an opposing crowd. This is why you can’t lose a team for 13 years. Because those old Colt fans became Yinzers) PAUSE.
Narrator: If this game is not the definition of me having to relive my childhood I don’t know what is. Lets see, the Ravens pinned the Steelers at their own 8, with 4 minutes to play, in a game with playoff implications, and then blew it because they couldn’t stop a 3rd Down. When have I seen that before? “Scampers left, stops, looks, comes back to his right, throws a pass, TOUCHDOWN PITTSBURGH! SANTONIO HOLMES!” This was indeed Week 15 of 2008 all over again. But wait, it gets worse. Remember when Minkah Fitzpatrick got hurt early in the 3rd Quarter? Lets see the anchor of the Steelers secondary gets injured at the start of the 2nd Half, comes back on the next series, and then makes the play to basically win the game. When have I also seen that? “Steelers show a blitz, Flacco is hit by Polamalu the ball’s out! AND THE STEELERS PLAY TAKEAWAY!” Well if we can relive history in two of the worst home losses by the Ravens in this rivalry, we may as well wait for the Queen Elizabeth to dock in our backyard. (Myron Cope said that during the Steelers epic comeback at Memorial Stadium in 1997) I’ll give a lot of credit to Pittsburgh and Mike Tomlin. Nonsense like this was why I was afraid to give up on them even as a fan of a rival. Because the moment you think they’re done, they find new ways to win, and shock you when you least expect it. Who thought they would do anything after starting 3-7? That comes to show you why Tomlin is still one of the best coaches in the game, because when their fate is on the line, they come through. We saw this last week when they came back to beat Vegas on the 50th Anniversary of the Immaculate Reception. It turns out that Franco Harris sacrificed his life so that the Steelers could have a 19th consecutive winning season. I may be speculating that, but when former Pirates Manager Chuck Tanner learned that his mother died during the 1979 World Series against the Orioles, they would win the final three games to capture the championship after being down 3-1. You know what’s insane.
Do you know who the only team that has beaten the Ravens in their Blackout uniforms, and in home night games during the regular season in the Harbaugh Era? (excluding the COVID year) Marylander: YOU GUESSED IT! THOSE ROTTEN STEELERS! Narrator: That’s because they know the Ravens so well, and they have a huge fanbase in Maryland as well. In fact they’ve won 5 of 6 in Baltimore since the Ravens took the knee after the London Fiasco. That just shows you how many Raven fans have sold their season tickets since that incident. Baltimore fans are very patriotic, and when that kneeling thing happened, some of the fans left the Ravens and didn’t come back. But it gets worse. Guess who they became fans of? (Pennsylvania Polka playing) The Pittsburgh Steelers! So now we understand the common denominator as to why the Ravens have struggled against their rivals at home. Because there are times during those games where it feels like it’s a Steelers home game. That and the fact that most former Colt fans jumped on the Yinzer mobile after the 1983 season, is why it feels like Pittsburgh has 2 home games a year against the Ravens. The worst part for Baltimore is that this game may eliminate them from winning the AFC North. Honestly, I’m not mad. They have their playoff spot locked up, and they really don’t need Lamar back until the postseason begins. But it would have been really nice to knock the Steelers out of the playoffs, and end Tomlin’s streak. If they didn’t clinch Festivus on Christmas Eve, I would be absolutely livid because they would have to rush Planet LJ back next week against the Bungles with their season on the line. If I’m Harbaugh no matter what the NFL does with the Bengals vs Bills game after the Damar Hamlin situation I’m resting my starters. There’s too many men dealing with injuries, and they need as many players as possible to be healthy for the postseason. I know the speculation is that this could have been Boy Wonder’s last home game at M&T Bank Stadium. Even if it isn’t, this will most likely have been it for Greg Roman and Steve Saunders, as Harbaugh threw both of them under the bus. He better because he for sure doesn’t want to end up like his brother did in San Francisco when those two yes-men ruined his legacy. Speaking of Jim Harbaugh he also laid an egg on National TV during the College Football Playoff. (Usually when one of them has a bad game, the other follows suit) All I can say is that this better not have been the last Ravens home game when they’ve been good for a long time. I don’t think it will be even if they lose Lamar because they’ll get a good return for him and Mark Andrews, but just don’t tell that to the internet nerds. What’s that I hear? Aw, are you ok Poe? Poe: Whistling (I don’t know buddy) Narrator: What’s wrong? Poe: Whistling (I want Edgar, and Allan to stay with me for the long term future, but I don’t know if I should do this) Narrator: Poe, listen, they came back for you. You’re the reason they are out of retirement. It’s your choice to convince Eric DeCosta if they should have both of your older brothers. Poe: Whistling (I want them to be back, but I don’t know what he’ll say) Narrator: Poe, everything is going to be fine. Hey, you want a snowball? Poe: Whistling (YES!) Narrator: Well here you go! Poe: Whistling (Its Grape, I LOVE IT! Thank you so much!) Narrator: Edgar, and Allan you want a snowball for yourself. Edgar/Allan: Whistling (SURE!) Narrator: Here you go. Boys everythings going to be fine. We’re gonna find a way for all three of you brothers to be back long term. Raven brothers: Whistling (COOL!) Anyways enjoy the rest of your week, and to wrap this up will you join me in a moment of silence, as we send nothing but the best towards the health of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin…………………………. Thank you.
Bragging Rights Sports 