The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens 26-24 to win the AFC North and advance to the postseason. They finish the season 10-7 in what may be Aaron Rodgers’s final dance.
In a Week 18 full of exhibition games, Pittsburgh and Baltimore had a rollercoaster final game of the season, including 4 lead changes in the 4th quarter.
Let’s talk about Aaron Rodgers’s heroics.
Aaron Rodgers off the DMT
Steelers leading receiver, DK Metcalf, suspended for punching the most punchable Lions fan.
Tight end Darnell Washington’s season over with a broken arm.
Aaron Rodgers, high off hallucinogens grown naturally in Central American rainforests, Scotty Miller, Adam Thielen and Calvin Austin bearhugged by their defenders on every single route, tossed perfect passes into nonexistent throwing windows, almost singlehandedly dragging this team up and down the field.
Let’s look at what the 42-year old drug addict did against the Ravens:
- 31-for-47 (65%)
- 294 yards
- 1 touchdown
- 1 carry for 20 rushing yards
Aaron Rodgers, the savvy vet, flipped the game when he hurled a hospital ball across the middle, taking out All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton.
Kyle Hamilton is done.
He just got friendly fire from his teammate as they collided, not good 🙏 pic.twitter.com/i8nyV6wB2x
— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) January 5, 2026
The experiment worked.
Russell Wilson and Justin Fields couldn’t do it last season.
Aaron Rodgers, nursing a broken left hand, looked like he was back in a Packers jersey.
(And next week, the Houston Texans defense is going to send Aaron Rodgers into retirement in the back of an ambulance like the end of an episode of Monday Night Raw.)
Here are 4 other takeaways from the Sunday night thriller
TJ Watt doesn’t need lungs
Future Hall of Famer TJ Watt missed the last 3 games after suffering a collapsed lung.
If my lung collapsed, I wouldn’t open my computer to write again for another 6 months.
TJ Watt lost a lung, missed, like, a day of weight training and came back to help Pittsburgh make the playoffs with a huge interception on Lamar Jackson.
Of course that TJ Watt INT came off a batted pass from Cameron Heyward.
Cam is almost 37 years old and *still* the best interior defender in football.
He has been everywhere tonight. Genuinely perhaps the best game of his entire career.
Hall of Famer.pic.twitter.com/ym0VNLLK1n
— Mike Kennedy (@MikeKennedyNFL) January 5, 2026
On the same day Myles Garrett broke his single-season sack record, TJ Watt snagged an interception fresh off a ventilator.
Zay Flowers playoff redemption
In his rookie season, Zay Flowers fumbled the ball at the goal line, costing the Ravens a victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game.
The vibes around this Ravens organization would feel different if Zay scored that touchdown and Lamar outdueled Patrick Mahomes to make the Super Bowl.
On Sunday night, Zay Flowers made sure he would not be responsible for this Ravens loss.
Here’s what he did against the Steelers:
- 4 catches
- 138 yards
- 2 touchdowns
TOUCHDOWN ZAY FLOWERS AGAIN!!!!!!
Tune in on NBC!!!! pic.twitter.com/bX1jX4Nc7H
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) January 5, 2026
Zay Flowers did his job.
Lamar Jackson waited too long
Lamar Jackson no-called no-showed this season. Limited to 13 games, a season full of “will he/won’t he” play discussions as he and coach John Harbaugh on different pages about the status of his health, Lamar had fewer passing yards per game than Jacoby Brissett, Daniel Jones and rookie Tyler Shough.
Lamar’s 349 rushing yards this season were the worst of his career. Not sure if injuries prevented him from scrambling or his insistence on being considered a “pocket passer” by podcasters who, if given 100 tries to rush for 1 yard in an NFL game, would gain 1 yard 0 of 100 times but without Lamar being a running threat, he’s not an MVP. He’s a regular ass guy.
But he ended the year on a high note, if that matters.
Here’s what Lamar did in his final game of the season:
- 11-for-18
- 238 passing yards
- 3 touchdowns
- 1 interception
Congrats to Lamar for taking 2025 off. I feel like I did the same. Wow, he just like me.
Don’t draft kickers
The NFL Draft allows teams to fill out their rosters with cheap, young talent.
The later the draft goes, the more likely the team is to pick for depth, young bench players they can control financially and develop in-house to perhaps one day surpass the starters.
You should never use that rare resource on a kicker, unless that guy is going to hit game-winning field goals for you.
The Baltimore Ravens drafted kicker Tyler Loop in the 6th round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
He missed the game-winning kick that would’ve sent Baltimore to the playoffs.
TYLER LOOP MISSED
STEELERS ARE GOING TO THE PLAYOFFSpic.twitter.com/UbpNDXwvec
— Pick 6 Pack (@Pick6PackFB) January 5, 2026
What is the point of drafting a kicker if not for this exact moment?
The Ravens finished 30th in sacks. Aaron Rodgers was sacked 2 for only 4 yards. They let an elderly man with a broken hand and a busted achilles just chill in the pocket all night with no concerns.
Imagine how much better the Ravens would be if they spent that 6th round pick on a guy who can rush the passer instead of a kicker who misses kicks.
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