Pittsburgh Steelers nose tackle Steve McLendon had his worst game of the season against the Baltimore Ravens—and no, it wasn’t indicative of Justin Forsett’s 150-yard performance—so perhaps it’s a bit unfair for this to be my first breakdown for him of the season.
It’s also a bit surprising, considering the way that he largely handled Ravens center Jeremy Zuttah the last time these two teams met in the postseason, on multiple occasions single-handedly blowing up plays by driving the center back into the running back or quarterback.
It was Zuttah who often got the better of the matchup in this game, however, or at least drew even, as McLendon did not have a substantial impact on the running game, and by the fourth quarter the Steelers were feeding the Ravens a steady dose of nickel while nursing a small lead.