It was reported at a press meeting early Thursday by John Harbaugh that Zay Flowers will officially not be playing against the Steelers in the wild card round. Flowers sustained a knee injury during the Week 18 matchup against the Browns when he and a Browns linebacker collided early in the second quarter. This marks the first game Flowers will miss due to injury in his two year career as a starter. Unfortunately, the injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Ravens, who are set to face off against their division rivals – the Pittsburgh Steelers. Zay Flowers has been a great player for the Ravens all year, racking up a little over one thousand yards receiving and averaging a solid 14.3 yards per catch. The big question now: will the Ravens still be able to deliver without their Pro Bowl wide receiver?
Despite Flowers’ injury, the Ravens have more than enough talent on their roster to take care of business against the Steelers. With Flowers hurt, this provides even more incentive for the Ravens to run the ball with Derrick Henry. One of the key differences between the first and second time the Ravens played the Steelers this season was their run offense. In the first game against the Steelers, Henry only ran the ball 13 times for 65 yards, whereas in the second matchup, he ran the ball 24 times for 162 yards. That ended up being one of the key factors in why the Ravens won back in Week 16. And with Zay Flowers out, it is more important than ever for John Harbaugh and the Ravens to stick with their game plan and pound the rock.
Another player I expect to get a lot more attention today with Flowers out is Rashod Bateman. During the regular season, whenever Flowers’ receiving yards have been low, it’s usually because Bateman has had a big game of his own. One prime example of this was the Ravens’ game against the Buccaneers back in Week 7. While Flowers only recorded a single catch for 11 yards, Bateman went for over 120 yards and had a deep touchdown catch. We’ve seen Bateman’s playmaking abilities in the red zone especially over the second half of the season, where he has recorded five touchdowns in the past seven games. The Ravens also have the ability to move the ball to one of their many talented tight ends like Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and Charlie Kolar. Heading into the wild card round of the playoffs – Lamar will be looking to all of them more than ever to step up and make plays.
Overall, I don’t think that Flowers’ injury is a reason to panic; the Ravens have plenty of weapons and a talented quarterback. What I’m most worried about is the Ravens making careless mistakes, especially against a healthier Steelers team that now has George Pickens and DeShon Elliott back. At the end of the day, these are two teams that know each other extremely well, and it’s going to come down to which team can make big plays at the right moments to win.
