It’s a classic AFC North rival matchup, but in name alone only.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens are set to clash Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium with a great deal on the line between two 6-6 teams. Control of the AFC North will be determined in the matchup.

In the past, the two teams have locked in rugged, physical matchups. That still might be the case this week, but the Steelers and Ravens aren’t what they’ve been in the past. Both are struggling offensively, and the defenses aren’t those game-changing, smashmouth units they’ve been in the past.

That makes this matchup all the more intriguing because it’s unclear what is going to happen Sunday, though the Ravens do control the rivalry after dominating the Steelers in December and in the AFC Wild Card matchup last season.

There will be games within the game to watch. Make sure to keep an eye on key individual matchups in all three phases in the Steelers-Ravens matchup. That’s the biggest thing.

Below are my four matchups to watch Sunday in Baltimore.

RAVENS RB DERRICK HENRY VS. STEELERS LBS

The last time the Steelers played the Ravens and Derrick Henry, the future Hall of Famer gashed the Steelers for 186 yards and two touchdowns in the AFC Wild Card game, helping the Ravens roll to 299 yards on the ground. Though Henry hasn’t been that dynamic, dominant back he was last season, he is closing in on another 1,000-yard season. He should get a healthy helping of pigskin against a Steelers defense that just allowed 249 yards on the ground to Buffalo.

The Steelers stated after the loss to the Ravens in the Wild Card Round that they have a “Baltimore problem” and set out to fix their run-defense issues in the offseason. They have improved at times against the run, but they’re too inconsistent. With Patrick Queen banged up and free agent signing Malik Harrison — another Ravens transplant — struggling in his first year in Pittsburgh, the onus could fall on Payton Wilson this week. He’s a tackling machine but struggles when teams run right at him over and over again.

Pittsburgh has to find a way to stop the run, particularly Henry. The linebackers have to be up to task.

RAVENS C TYLER LINDERBAUM VS. STEELERS NT KEEANU BENTON

Similar to Henry vs. the Steelers’ linebackers, the matchup of Baltimore center Tyler Linderbaum against Steelers nose tackle Keeanu Benton is a big one. The Steelers will be without rookie defensive lineman Derrick Harmon, who has been a key run stopper on the year, so the onus falls on Benton a bit more.

He was nearly invisible against the Bills in Week 13 and needs to be much better this week. He holds a size advantage over Linderbaum, but the Ravens center is a great athlete who can get out into space and seal off gaps. He’s not going to overpower people at the point of attack, but he just knows how to position himself in the run game to create running lanes.

Benton needs to step up this week. He had a decent showing in the Wild Card loss in January but played just 30 snaps as the Steelers were in sub-package quite a bit. Historically though, he’s struggled against the Ravens. That can’t be the case this week. If Benton reverts to the early-season form he was in, Baltimore will run all day on Pittsburgh. Benton has to tap back into that disruptive form he was at for about a month in the middle of the season.

If he can, Pittsburgh’s defensive front has a chance to hold up.

STEELERS WR DK METCALF VS. RAVENS CB MARLON HUMPHREY

The Steelers haven’t been able to get DK Metcalf going in recent weeks. Since hauling in a touchdown pass in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers, Metcalf has produced just 18 receptions for 144 yards in the six weeks since. For those doing the math at home, that’s three receptions for 24 yards per game.

Not exactly getting bang for their buck, are they?

That has to change this week. The Steelers are struggling to do anything in the passing game, and Metcalf is drawing the brunt of the criticism for those struggles. He’ll find himself in a tough matchup this week against Baltimore cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Nate Wiggins. The last time Metcalf matched up with the Ravens was in 2023 in Seattle’s 37-3 loss. Metcalf had just one catch for 50 yards in that game, which ironically came against Patrick Queen. In the matchup with Humphrey, Metcalf had just one target. 

Humphrey isn’t the All-Pro he once was, so the opportunity is there. He’s allowed 39 receptions on 560 yards and two touchdowns, with that production coming on 57 targets. Teams have gone after him consistently this season and had a lot of success. The Steelers need to do the same.

STEELERS INTERIOR OL VS. RAVENS DT TRAVIS JONES

Quietly, one of the Ravens defense’s strengths this season is defensive tackle Travis Jones. He’s coming off a dominant showing against the Cincinnati Bengals and has become a complete package as a run stuffer and a guy who can generate pressure up the middle, too.

He’ll be a huge test for the Steelers’ interior offensive line, featuring Isaac Seumalo, Zach Frazier and Mason McCormick. The Steelers need to be able to run the football against the Ravens, and its starts on the interior, getting a good push with some displacement.

The Steelers weren’t able to do that against the Bills and need to be much better this week if the offense wants to have any semblance of balance and chance to control the football. On top of the run game, the interior of the offensive line needs to be able to hold up in protection, too.

Frazier has been great in protection this season and has allowed just eight pressures with no sacks. Seumalo has allowed just 11 pressures with only one in the last five weeks and one sack. McCormick has been the weak link in protection, allowing seven pressures and three sacks in the last five weeks.

If Pittsburgh can hold up in pass protection on the interior against a guy like Jones, who has 12 pressures in the last five weeks, and can run the ball consistently, its offense should have a chance to compete.