Steelers’ Mike Tomlin laments ‘disappointing’ wild-card loss to Ravens; Russell Wilson hopes to return to Pittsburgh

Russell Wilson and Co. were outrebounded for a total of 59 yards on 18 offensive plays in the first half (four punts on four possessions), allowing the Ravens to run their ground game smoothly and enter halftime with a comfortable 21-0 lead .

“We just weren’t good enough, to be completely honest,” Tomlin said when asked what went wrong on offense.

To his credit, Wilson stepped up his game in the second half and led back-to-back touchdown drives in the third quarter. But with the Ravens moving the chains so effortlessly – resulting in a franchise record for rushing yards in a playoff game – there was little chance of a comeback, as the game ended with a stunning 39-33 possession advantage going to Baltimore 20 :27.

Wilson, who will become a free agent this offseason and completed 20 of 29 passes for 270 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers, hopes this won’t be his last game with the Steelers.

“For me personally, it was one of the best years of being a Pittsburgh Steeler,” Wilson said. “Of course I hope I’m here.”

Tomlin said he’s “unwilling to take a big-picture approach” to the Steelers’ quarterback situation, which includes backup Justin Fields’ looming expiring contract.

Struggles on the offensive side of the ball have been the story of a 2024 Steelers team that hasn’t topped the 20-point mark since Week 14. The same goes for Pittsburgh’s recent lone playoff runs.

A same-old story could lead to significant changes for the Steelers in the coming months as frustrations mount.

“I know in the past we’ve played well to start the season and then just get out of bed at the end,” Steelers safety DeShon Elliott said. “The same thing happened this year. The season ends with a five-game losing streak, including the playoffs. We have to find out what the problem is. We have to figure out how to get better. We’ve got to figure it out.’ How we can get past this point, we’ve got to figure out how we can finish strong in the seasons to go into the playoffs and be ready to play playoff football.