Russell Wilson and Co. were blanked in the first half to the tune of 59 total yards on 18 offensive plays (four punts on four possessions), which allowed the Ravens to seamlessly operate their ground game and go into halftime with a comfortable 21-0 lead.
“We just weren’t good enough, to be quite honest with you,” Tomlin said when asked what went wrong offensively.
To his credit, Wilson ponied up in the second half, leading consecutive touchdown drives in the third quarter. But as the Ravens moved the chains so effortlessly — resulting in a franchise record for rushing yards in a playoff game — there was little chance for a comeback as the game ended with Baltimore holding an astounding time of possession advantage of 39:33 to 20:27.
Due to become a free agent this offseason, Wilson, who finished 20-of-29 passing for 270 yards and two TDs with no turnovers, is hoping this won’t be his last game with the Steelers.
“It’s been one of the best years for me, personally, to be a Pittsburgh Steeler,” Wilson said. “Obviously, I hope I’m here.”
Tomlin said he was “not ready to take a big-picture approach” on the Steelers’ quarterback situation, which also includes backup Justin Fields approaching an expiring contract.
Struggles on the offensive side of the ball have been the story for a 2024 Steelers team that hasn’t surpassed the 20-point mark since Week 14. The same goes for Pittsburgh’s most recent one-and-done playoff runs.
A same-old story could spark significant change for the Steelers in the coming months with those frustrations mounting.
“I know that in the past that we’ve played well in the beginning of the season and then we just s— the bed in the end,” Steelers safety DeShon Elliott said. “Same s— happened this year; close the season out on a five-game losing streak, including the playoffs. We got to figure out what’s the problem. We got to figure out to get better. We got to figure out how to get past that point. We got to figure out how to finish strong in seasons to go into the playoffs hot, ready to play playoff football.”