Five things we learned from Steelers 39, Ravens 38

Here are five things we learned from Steelers 39-38 win over the Ravens on Sunday night.

1. Antonio Brown is stating his case for NFL MVP.

It's an odd-numbered year, so Brown is making his run to win the team MVP hardware for a fourth time in his career. Brown was named Steelers' MVP in the 2011, 2013 and 2015 seasons so it stands to reason that he should win the award again this year.

But Brown's recognition should go beyond team honors. Given the absurdity of the numbers Brown has produced this season, his candidacy for the NFL MVP award can no longer be overlooked. No wide receiver has won the coveted league MVP award, but Brown is threatening to end that streak.

With 11 receptions for 213 yards against the Ravens, Brown continued to show he is a playmaker without peer. Consider that with 99 receptions and 1,509 yards, Brown has an 11-catch, 276-yard lead on his closest competitor, Houston Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

Brown also is doing it while defensive coordinators are doing everything legally to try to take him out of the passing game.

When the Steelers gained possession with 2:40 left in the third quarter, they were trailing 31-20 and Brown was having a modestly productive game with five catches for 69 yards. To that point, his only reception in the second half went for a 5-yard loss.

From that point, Brown caught six passes for 144 yards. He turned a short catch into a 57-yard gain on a third-and-10 play. He also drew a pass interference penalty that set up a touchdown that pulled the Steelers within 31-29.

He had two more catches for 33 yards early in the next drive that led to another touchdown. On the game-winning field goal drive, Brown caught a 34-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger on third-and-4 that put the Steelers on the Ravens 30 with 1:02 remaining.

With an eighth consecutive win on the line, the Steelers put the ball in the hands of their best player. As usual, Brown didn't disappoint.

2. Tight ends filled the void created by JuJu Smith-Schuster's suspension.

With Smith-Schuster watching the game on his apartment television, the Steelers turned to a little-used position to create mismatch problems for the Ravens.

Jesse James hit career highs with 10 catches (on 12 targets) for 97 yards. In 60 minutes, James produced one-third of his receiving output for the season, as he entered the game with 29 receptions for 259 yards.

James accounted for more catches and yards than secondary wide receivers Martavis Bryant and Eli Rogers had together. They finished with nine combined catches for 66 yards.

Just as surprising was the activity for Vance McDonald before he exited with a shoulder injury. Playing for the first time in four games after his balky ankle finally healed, McDonald caught four of six targets for 52 yards, with a long reception of 19 yards. Not bad for someone who had just five catches for 79 yards coming into the game.

3. Kickoffs were the point of no return for Martavis Bryant.

One game after Bryant took a kickoff the distance only to have the return negated by a holding penalty, he showed just how raw he is when fielding kicks.

Bryant averaged a paltry 11 yards on five kickoff returns, giving the Steelers terrible field position throughout the game.

Here is where the Steelers started drives after Bryant's return: the 12, 18, 9, 20 and 14. The final time the Ravens kicked off, Fitzgerald Toussaint got the ball and brought it back 23 yards to the Steelers 27.

Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has a strong leg, so it wasn't like he couldn't reach the end zone. Rather, the Ravens realized the Steelers' shortcomings in the return game and had Tucker drop the ball inside the 10. On only one of Bryant's five returns did he bring the ball out of the end zone.

Bryant's issue was trying to look for holes that weren't there. Instead of heading straight up the middle in search of a lane, Bryant often ran laterally only to find himself hemmed in. Even with his impressive speed, Bryant couldn't outrun 11 defenders as he tried to hit the perimeter.

Don't be surprised if the New England Patriots have Stephen Gostkowski drop his kickoffs in front of the goal line next Sunday so Bryant – or whoever the Steelers have lined up deep – will have to bring the ball upfield. Don't expect many touchbacks and automatic possession for the Steelers at the 25.

4. Is Sean Davis' favorite movie, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?”

Davis went to the extremes against the Ravens, with the bad (and even the ugly) outweighing the positives.

The second-year safety got off to a good start by intercepting Joe Flacco on the first series, a turnover that led to a touchdown and 7-0 lead for the Steelers. He also led the Steelers with 12 tackles.

However, it was the tackles he didn't make and the passes he didn't defend that defined Davis' night.

First, he was beaten in coverage by Chris Moore on a 30-yard touchdown catch that cut the Steelers' 14-0 lead in half. Then, he missed a tackle on a swing pass to Alex Collins that led to a 37-yard play.

Two personal foul calls against Davis also hurt the Steelers. Davis shoved Collins out of bounds with a late hit following a 21-yard run. This set up the Ravens at the Steelers 38 and led to a touchdown that put the Ravens ahead, 31-20, in the third quarter.

Finally, Davis slammed tight end Benjamin Watson to the ground after an incompletion, moving the ball to the Steelers 41 and leading to another touchdown that gave the Ravens a 38-29 lead in the fourth quarter.

Davis should anticipate getting a FedEx letter from the NFL this week with details of a fine enclosed.

5. Pressuring the quarterback didn't follow a familiar script.

Entering the game, the Steelers were second in sacks while also providing some of the best pass production Roethlisberger has seen in his career.

The roles were reversed against the Ravens. The Steelers didn't get a sack until the final play of the game when T.J. Watt forced a fumble from Joe Flacco. And, despite Roethlisberger eclipsing 500 yards passing for the third time in his career (most of any quarterback in NFL history), he was brought down three times by the Ravens.

Roethlisberger had been sacked 16 times in 12 games and only six times in the previous six games. Of course, when you drop back to pass 69 times, the odds of getting sacked multiple times increases.

The offensive line has played without right tackle Marcus Gilbert for much of the season and will have to make do for one more game before he returns from his four-game suspension. As for the defense, it will face its biggest challenge in trying to disrupt Tom Brady's rhythm (and in putting him on his back) when the Patriots visit next weekend.

Joe Rutter is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jrutter@tribweb.com or via Twitter @tribjoerutter.