No disrespect to the Bengals, Browns, Eagles, Cowboys or other teams _ the Steelers' one and only rival is the Baltimore Ravens. There is no team that can claim every aspect of a true rivalry like the Ravens can with the Steelers. The two teams are geographically natural rivals, have played each other a ton, have fan bases that hate each other and, most importantly, the games are always competitive.
There are other teams who try to be the Steelers' rival but they produce some of the elements of a true rivalry. The Ravens are the only team that can claim them all.
The Bengals, for instance, aren't particularly well liked by Steelers fans and fit the bill geographically. They have also played the Steelers twice a year since 1970, but the Bengals haven't been competitive with the Steelers. The Steelers are 2-0 against the Bengals in playoff games, 12-3 overall since 2010 and 27-9 since 2000.
The Browns and Steelers play a lot and are close in proximity but, well, you know the rest of the story. At this point, Steelers fans probably have pity on the Browns and root for them to win a game or two. The Cowboys and Steelers have played in some Super Bowls but don't play very often. The Eagles are from Philadelphia, so Pittsburghers hate them, but the Eagles are rarely relevant. And the Patriots absolutely own the Steelers. People who think the Steelers and Raiders are rivals are either really old or spend way too much time watching NFL Films. To those people: Take note that almost all of the relevant Steelers-Raiders NFL Films are narrated by the late great John Facenda _ who died in 1984!
That brings us back to the Steelers' one and only rival, the Baltimore Ravens _ or, as enlightened callers to radio talk shows would call them, the Balti-morons.
It really doesn't get any better than this rivalry. These two teams will meet again Sunday in Baltimore, and it will no doubt once again be a nasty, hard-fought, ugly, intense football game. There will be plenty of trash talk, hard hits _ some that border on dirty, some that blow across that border and into the land of cheap shots _ and at least one coach will say something inflammatory after the game.
This has been the best rivalry in the NFL for quite some time because one or both teams have been among the best teams in the league. The Steelers and Ravens have combined to win four Super Bowls and appear in five since 2000. The series record in that time is 19-19. The AFC North Division was formed in 2002, and either the Steelers or Ravens have won 11 of the 15 titles.
Adding to the charm of the rivalry is the fact that these games are not particularly fun to watch. They have been marred with penalties, turnovers, field goals, after-the-whistle business and poor offensive football. They're close games, too. Nine of the past 12 have been decided by one score. Seven of those nine were decided by three points or fewer. The Steelers lead the overall series, 25-21, but the Ravens are 10-6 since 2010. The Ravens have won four of the past five and the past four played at M&T Bank Stadium. It's early in the season, so no one game is life or death, but this will be an important one that could factor large in the division race.
In short, take a seat, relax and enjoy this game Sunday because it will, if nothing else, be entertaining on every level. The actual football could be brutal at times, but invariably it will likely end in a dramatic fashion and write yet another chapter in the NFL's best and most important rivalry.
